MASS, VOLUME &

DENSITY

By: Renata Chebotareva

Mass, Volume and Density are all physical properties of

matter.

Matter is everything in the universe that takes up space. It makes up everything that you can see, feel,

taste or touch.

Mass, Volume and Density are all measurements that we can take of material objects. We measure stuff to understand it

better and to compare it to other stuff.

Density

Density measures how heavy something is for it’s size. We can calculate Density by dividing an

objects mass by its volume.

For example, the mass of something was 250 grams and the volume was 1,000 cubic centimeters…250/1,000 = 0.25. So the

Density of this cube is 0.25 grams per cubic centimeter!

Formulas Mass/Volume = Density

Mass Volume Density

16,000 g

800 cm3

16,000 g800 cm3 =

20 g/cm3

1,000 g

625 mL

1,000 g625 mL =

1.6 g/mL

250 g 10 cm3

250g10cm3 =

25 g/cm3

Brick

Soccer Ball

Ring

For example we measure time in hours, minuets and seconds. Can you imagine if we didn’t have time?

And if we couldn’t measure the mass, volume and density of objects, we’d be just as confused about what they are and why they act the way they do.

Measurements also help us standardize stuff.

In the lab we used the metric system to measure stuff. Its basic units are the meter for length the

liter for volume and the gram for mass.

The metric system is used all over the world, so that help scientists compare their discovery's and ideas

without too much confusion.

Mass

Mass is a measurement of how much matter an object contains. In a lab, we measure it with a balance or a scale.

Remember that weight is different than mass. Weight is actually a measurement of the effect gravity has on a object. Weight is measured in Newton's and mass is

measured in grams.

For example, if something weighs 2.5 Newton on earth, it will weigh 1/6th as much on the moon!

Formulas Volume x Density = Mass

Volume Density Mass

Can of Pop

Apple

Banana

160 mL

5 g/mL

800 g

80 mL

2.5 g/mL

200 g

50 cm3 10 g/cm3 500 g

160 mL x 5 g/mL =

80 mL x 2.5 g/mL =

50 cm3 x 10 g/cm3 =

Volume

Volume measured of how much space something takes up. If the object is a solid, the volume is measured in

cubic centimeters and you can calculate it by multiplying its length, by its width, by its height.

Liquid volume is measured in liters. One milliliter takes up the same amount of space as one cubic

centimeter.

Its easy to measure the volume of a cube, but is a littler more difficult with an irregularly-shaped object…like a pebble. Matter displaces liquid – that’s a fancy way of

saying it takes up space. . If you can measure the amount of liquid that the object displaced, then you’ve found the

volume of the object!

For example, If I had a beaker of water that had a volume of 50 milliliters, after I dropped the rock into it, the water level rose to 70 milliliters. So we know that

that the pebble has a volume of 20 milliliters, or 20 cubic centimeters, since it’s a solid.

FormulasMass/Density = Volume

Mass Density Volume

Pillow

Book

Pencil

100 g 0.25 g/mL100 g 0.25 mL =

400 mL

3,000 g 30 g/cm3

3,000 g 30 g/cm3 =

100 cm3

100 g 0.625 g/cm3

100 g0.625 g/cm3

=

160 cm3

Points to remember!Density measures how heavy something is for it’s size.

Mass/ Volume = Density

Mass is a measurement of how much matter an object contains.

Volume x Density = Mass

Remember that weight is different than mass. Weight is actually a measurement of the effect gravity has on a object. Weight is measured in Newton's and mass is measured in grams.

Volume measured of how much space something takes up.

Mass/Density = Volume

Bibliography

Brain POP Measuring Matter

Science Basics Week 2 Density Packet

Clip Art