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AP Physics 2 Fluid Statics — practice questions

Explore 23 free Fluid Statics questions in AP Physics 2 Physics. Open each question or exercise to read its content, reference answers and available explanation.

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Fluid Statics questions and exercises with answers

Showing questions 1–23 of 23.

Density compares two measurable properties of a sample of matter. Which statement defines it?Read the answer and worked solution →Density is mass per unit volume. Which unit is therefore the SI unit of density?Read the answer and worked solution →A reservoir has a surface area of 50.0 km^2 and an average depth of 40.0 m. Taking the density of water as 1.00 x 10^3 kg/m^3, what mass of water does it hold?Read the answer and worked solution →Pressure is defined from a force and the surface on which that force acts. Which definition is correct?Read the answer and worked solution →The SI unit of pressure is the pascal. One pascal is equal to which of these?Read the answer and worked solution →Water 80.0 m deep presses on a vertical dam wall 500 m wide, and the average pressure on that wall is 3.92 x 10^5 Pa. What force does the water exert on the dam?Read the answer and worked solution →What is the standard value of atmospheric pressure at sea level?Read the answer and worked solution →Gauge pressure is quoted relative to a chosen reference. Which reference does a pressure gauge use?Read the answer and worked solution →How is absolute pressure obtained from a gauge reading?Read the answer and worked solution →A tyre gauge reads 34 psi where atmospheric pressure is 14.7 psi. What is the absolute pressure inside the tyre?Read the answer and worked solution →What is a buoyant force?Read the answer and worked solution →Why does an object immersed in a fluid feel a net upward force at all?Read the answer and worked solution →Whether an object floats or sinks in a fluid is settled by a single comparison. Which comparison is it?Read the answer and worked solution →Ice has a density of 917 kg/m^3 and fresh water 1000 kg/m^3. What fraction of a floating ice block lies below the waterline?Read the answer and worked solution →What name is given to the attractive forces between molecules of the same type?Read the answer and worked solution →A drop of water clings to a window pane, held there by forces between unlike molecules. What are those forces called?Read the answer and worked solution →Intraocular pressure keeps the eye in shape. What is its normal range?Read the answer and worked solution →What happens to the pressure inside the lungs while a person inhales?Read the answer and worked solution →Match each fluid termRead the answer and worked solution →Work the pressure arithmeticRead the answer and worked solution →True or false: fluid staticsRead the answer and worked solution →Tap what belongs to each ideaRead the answer and worked solution →Complete the fluid rulesRead the answer and worked solution →

Worked practice questions

Density compares two measurable properties of a sample of matter. Which statement defines it?

  1. The weight per unit of surface area
  2. The volume per unit of mass
  3. The mass per unit of volume
  4. The force per unit of area
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Correct answer: C. The mass per unit of volume

1. Density is defined as the mass of a substance divided by the volume that mass occupies. 2. In symbols this is written as mass divided by volume, so density is the mass per unit of volume. 3. Volume per unit of mass is the reciprocal of density, not density itself. 4. Force per unit of area is the definition of pressure, and weight per unit of surface area is not a standard quantity here. _Source: OpenStax College Physics (CC BY 4.0), Ch 11 "Fluid Statics", section 11.2 Density_

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Density is mass per unit volume. Which unit is therefore the SI unit of density?

  1. Newtons per cubic metre
  2. Grams per cubic centimetre
  3. Kilograms per square metre
  4. Kilograms per cubic metre
Show answer and solution

Correct answer: D. Kilograms per cubic metre

1. Density is mass divided by volume, so its unit is an SI mass unit divided by an SI volume unit. 2. The SI unit of mass is the kilogram and the SI unit of volume is the cubic metre. 3. The SI unit of density is therefore kilograms per cubic metre. 4. Grams per cubic centimetre is a convenient non-SI alternative, and a newton is a force rather than a mass. _Source: OpenStax College Physics (CC BY 4.0), Ch 11 "Fluid Statics", section 11.2 Density_

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A reservoir has a surface area of 50.0 km^2 and an average depth of 40.0 m. Taking the density of water as 1.00 x 10^3 kg/m^3, what mass of water does it hold?

  1. 2.00 x 10^9 kg
  2. 2.00 x 10^6 kg
  3. 2.00 x 10^12 kg
  4. 2.00 x 10^15 kg
Show answer and solution

Correct answer: C. 2.00 x 10^12 kg

1. Mass follows from density and volume, since density is mass divided by volume, so mass equals density times volume. 2. The volume of the reservoir is its surface area multiplied by its average depth. 3. Convert the area first: 1 km is 10^3 m, so 1 km^2 is 10^6 m^2 and 50.0 km^2 = 5.00 x 10^7 m^2. 4. Volume = (5.00 x 10^7 m^2)(40.0 m) = 2.00 x 10^9 m^3. 5. Mass = (1.00 x 10^3 kg/m^3)(2.00 x 10^9 m^3) = 2.00 x 10^12 kg. 6. The value 2.00 x 10^9 kg is the trap for anyone who reports the volume in cubic metres and forgets to multiply by the density. 7. Answers of 2.00 x 10^6 kg and 2.00 x 10^15 kg come from squaring the kilometre conversion wrongly, either by leaving the area in km^2 or by using 10^6 m per km. _Source: OpenStax College Physics (CC BY 4.0), Ch 11 "Fluid Statics", section 11.2 Density_

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