A 2-column table with 5 rows. The first column titled metal has entries aluminum, cork, iron, lead, wax. The second column titled Density (grams per cubic centimeter) has entries 2.64, 0.24, 7.50, 11.34, 0.72.

Question

If the density of water is 1.0 g/cm3, which of these materials would float in water, based on their densities? Check all that apply.

aluminum
cork
iron
lead
wax

Answer 1

To determine which materials would float in water, we need to compare their densities to the density of water, which is 1.0 g/cm³. Materials with a density less than that of water will float, while those with a density greater than that of water will sink.

Here are the densities for each material:

• Aluminum: 2.64 g/cm³ (sinks)
• Cork: 0.24 g/cm³ (floats)
• Iron: 7.50 g/cm³ (sinks)
• Lead: 11.34 g/cm³ (sinks)
• Wax: 0.72 g/cm³ (floats)

Based on this information, the materials that would float in water are:

• Cork
• Wax

Materials that float in water:

• Cork
• Wax