Question

Why does a ship made of steel float on water while an oil pin of steel sinks down?
A. The density of seawater is more significant and hence the ship floats.
B. Owing to the large volume of the ship, it displaces more water, so up-thrust is more.
C. The vessel contains large air pockets, which helps it to float smoothly.
D. In the case of the tip, the pressure is more since the area of its tip is small, so it sinks, but for the ship, the size of its base is more.

Answer 1

Hint:The object would be submerged or it will float, this all will depend upon the balance of forces i.e. force due to weight of the body and the force of the buoyant action. Also the line of application of both the forces must be the same, and the forces must be equal and opposite.

Complete Step by Step Answer:
The whole concept lies in the force interaction, one because of the weight and one coming from beneath the liquid in vertical direction, if these two forces become equal then the component is in a floating condition.

In case of a ship, the force of thrust due to the small drowned section of the ship is equal to the weight of the whole ship body that is why the ship floats.

As the density of steel is more than that of water. So the force due to weight of the pin is more than that of the force due to the buoyant action. Therefore, the pin is drowned.

Therefore, the correct option is (B).

Note: Since air is also a fluid and a balloon filled with hydrogen gas floats in air space since the buoyant force calculated by the weight of the displaced volume of air by the balloon is equal to the low value of the hydrogen gas acting downwards. Since the buoyant force calculated by the weight of the displaced volume of air by the balloon is equal to the low weight of the hydrogen gas acting downwards.