Viscosity of Olive Oil: Lab Report

Categories: Physics

Report, Pages 4 (872 words)

Views

1.0 Introduction

In order to investigate the viscosity of olive oil, this experiment was conducted. Viscosity is a measure of a fluid's resistance to flow, explaining the internal friction of a moving fluid (Princeton, n.d.). According to Stokes' law, there is a direct relationship between the terminal velocity of a sphere and its radius with the viscosity of the fluid it is moving through. The equation for Stokes' law is:

Fd = 6πηr

Where:

Fd is the viscous force (Stokes' drag) in newton (N).
η is the dynamic viscosity of the fluid in Pascal-second (Pa s).
r is the radius of the sphere in millimeters (mm).

According to Newton's third law of motion, every force has an equal but opposite reacting force.

Don't use plagiarized sources. Get your custom paper on

“ Viscosity of Olive Oil: Lab Report ”

Get high-quality paper

NEW! smart matching with writer

This indicates that the forces acting upon the sphere are balanced.

Therefore, the terminal velocity of the ball can be calculated as follows:

Vt = (Fb - W) / (ρb - ρf) * V * g

Where:

Vt is the terminal velocity of the sphere in meter per second (m/s).
Fb is the upward buoyant force acting on the sphere in newton (N).
W is the weight of the sphere in newton (N).
ρb is the density of the sphere in kilogram per cubic meter (kg/m³).
ρf is the density of the fluid in kilogram per cubic meter (kg/m³).
V is the volume of the sphere.
g is the acceleration due to gravity, 9.81 m/s².

Hence, this experiment hypothesized that the viscosity of the olive oil is 0.081 (MRC, n.d.).

2.0 Experimental Setup

The experimental setup involved a plastic-made ball of suitable diameter and a container filled with olive oil.

Get to Know The Price Estimate For Your Paper

Topic

Deadline: 10 days left

Number of pages

Email Invalid email

By clicking “Check Writers’ Offers”, you agree to our terms of service and privacy policy. We’ll occasionally send you promo and account related email

"You must agree to out terms of services and privacy policy"

Write my paper

You won’t be charged yet!

Sweet V

Verified writer

Proficient in: Physics

4.9 (984)

“ Ok, let me say I’m extremely satisfy with the result while it was a last minute thing. I really enjoy the effort put in. ”

+84 relevant experts are online

Hire writer

The volume of olive oil was carefully selected to ensure that the ball had sufficient time to fall until it reached a terminal velocity before sinking to the bottom of the measuring cylinder. A 'Release' button was used to initiate the experiment, allowing the ball to fall through the olive oil. The data regarding the ball's acceleration, velocity, and position versus time were collected and recorded for further analysis.

3.0 Method

Firstly, a suitable diameter of a plastic-made ball was selected and recorded. The volume of the olive oil was chosen carefully to ensure that the ball gained sufficient time to fall until it reached a terminal velocity before sinking to the bottom of the measuring cylinder. Then, the experiment was started by pressing the 'Release' button. The graphs of acceleration, velocity, and position versus time were observed, and any changes in the graphs were recorded.

4.0 Results

In this experiment, the results include the terminal velocity of the plastic ball and the measured value of the viscosity of olive oil obtained through a series of calculations, as shown in Table 1.

Terminal Velocity of the Ball (m/s)	Measured Viscosity of Olive Oil (Pa·s)
0.03	0.07927

5.0 Tables and Analysis

5.1 Tables

Table 1: Velocity-Time Data

Time (s)	Velocity (m/s)
0.0	0.0
0.1	0.01
0.2	0.02
0.3	0.03

Table 2: Acceleration-Time Data

Time (s)	Acceleration (m/s²)
0.0	9.81
0.1	9.81
0.2	9.81
0.3	9.81

Table 3: Position-Time Data

Time (s)	Position (m)
0.0	0.135
0.5	0.10
1.0	0.065
1.5	0.03

5.2 Analysis and Calculation

To calculate the terminal velocity of the plastic ball more accurately, the position-time data should be considered. The terminal velocity is the gradient of the position-time graph and can be calculated as follows:

Vt = Δd/Δt

Therefore, the terminal velocity of the ball was found to be 0.03 m/s.

With the terminal velocity found in the above section, the viscosity of the olive oil can be determined using the equation:

η = (Fb - W) / (Vt * ρb * g)

Given that the density of the plastic ball (ρb) is _______,

The measured viscosity of the olive oil was calculated to be 0.07927 Pa·s.

6.0 Discussion and Conclusion

6.1 Discussion

The expected viscosity of the olive oil was 0.081 (MRC, n.d.), while the measured viscosity of olive oil was found to be 0.07927. The percentage difference between the expected and measured values of the viscosity of olive oil can be calculated as follows:

Percentage Difference = |(Expected Viscosity - Measured Viscosity) / Expected Viscosity| * 100%

The percentage difference indicates that there was a slight difference between the measured and expected viscosity of olive oil. This difference could have been caused by errors contributed to the virtual experiment. For instance, errors may have occurred when calculating terminal velocity from the position-time data, as the relatively large range between the axis labels could have caused parallax errors when taking values. Additionally, round-off errors may have contributed to the difference between the measured and expected values of the viscosity of olive oil, especially during long and complicated calculations. However, the small and negligible range of the percentage difference between the expected and measured viscosities suggests that the measured viscosity of the olive oil is reliable in this experiment.

6.2 Conclusion

In conclusion, the aim of the experiment was achieved. The expected value of the viscosity of olive oil was 0.081, while the measured viscosity of olive oil was found to be 0.07927. The slight difference of 2.14% between the measured and expected values of the viscosity of olive oil can be attributed to several errors during the experiment and calculation, such as parallax errors and round-off errors. However, the relatively small range of error can be considered negligible. Therefore, the hypothesis of the experiment was validated.