Question

How is buoyant force related to floating and sinking?

Answer 1

Hint: Buoyant force is an upward force that is exerted by a fluid and opposes the weight of an immersed object. It is caused due to the difference in the pressure that is acting on the opposite sides of an object which is immersed in a static fluid.

Complete step by step answer:
The buoyant force will be experienced by a body when it is completely submerged or partially submerged in gas or into a liquid. According to Archimedes principle, It is equal to the weight of the liquid that is displaced by it. It depends on the density of the fluid, the mass of the object, the weight of the object, and also on the submerged volume of the object.
There are three types of buoyancy namely positive buoyancy, negative buoyancy, and neutral buoyancy.
If the object's weight is less than the buoyant force, then the object will rise to the surface and will float. If the object's weight is more than the buoyant force, then the object will sink. If the object's weight is equal to the buoyant force, then the object will remain suspended at that depth.

Note:
1. Whenever the object has a higher density than the fluid in which it was placed, then the object will sink. Similarly, when the object has lower density than the fluid in which it was placed, then the object will float.
2. In general, irrespective of the size, shape, and type of the material, heavy objects will sink while the light objects will float.