Question

Liquids generally have lower density as compared to solids. But you must have observed that ice floats on water. Find out why.

Answer 1

• The mass per unit volume of a substance is called density (density = mass/volume). As the volume of a substance increases, its density decreases.
• Though ice is a solid, it has a large number of empty spaces between its particles, which are larger than the spaces between the particles of water.
• Thus, the volume of ice is greater than that of water. Hence, the density of ice is less than that of water. A substance with lower density than water can float on water. Therefore, ice floats on water.