Density Calculator
With mass 2.7 kg, volume 1 liters, density comes to 2,700.00 kg/m³ — density. It is reached in 6 steps, the last of which is 2.7 / (1 / 1000), and each one is printed on the page with its numbers filled in. The formula is the one published by NIST Special Publication 811, not an approximation fitted to it.
Density from mass and volume, in kilograms per cubic meter, grams per cubic centimeter and pounds per cubic foot, with what floats and what does not.
Formula and sources checked · How we check
Mass 2.7 kg, Volume 1 liters
2,700.00 kg/m³
Density for the example below. Editing a field recomputes the calculator below; this figure holds the answer the page was loaded with.
It is written into the HTML rather than drawn by a script, so a search engine reading this page without running JavaScript still finds an answer.
- Kilograms per cubic meter
2.7 / (1 / 1000)2,700 kg/m³- Grams per cubic centimeter
2700 / 10002.7 g/cm³- Pounds per cubic foot
2700 * 0.062428168.555 lb/cu ft- Specific gravity, against water
2700 / 10002.7- Floats in water
0- Fraction submerged if it floats
1
Worked example
2.7 kg in a liter is 2,700 kg per cubic meter — aluminium. Its specific gravity is 2.7, so it sinks; ice at 917 kg per cubic meter floats with 91.7% of itself below the surface, which is where the iceberg figure comes from.
How to work it out yourself
- 1.Weigh the object and measure its volume. For an awkward shape, the water it displaces is its volume — a liter displaced is a liter of object.
- 2.Read specific gravity if you are comparing against water: it is the density divided by 1,000 and it has no units, which is why it is the same number in every measurement system.
- 3.Anything under 1,000 kg per cubic meter floats in fresh water, and the fraction sitting below the surface is its specific gravity.
Density of a kilogram in different volumes
| Volume (liters) | Density | Grams per cubic centimeter | Pounds per cubic foot |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0.25 | 10,800.00 kg/m³ | 10.8 g/cm³ | 674.22 lb/cu ft |
| 0.5 | 5,400.00 kg/m³ | 5.4 g/cm³ | 337.11 lb/cu ft |
| 0.75 | 3,600.00 kg/m³ | 3.6 g/cm³ | 224.74 lb/cu ft |
| 1 | 2,700.00 kg/m³ | 2.7 g/cm³ | 168.56 lb/cu ft |
| 1.5 | 1,800.00 kg/m³ | 1.8 g/cm³ | 112.37 lb/cu ft |
| 2 | 1,350.00 kg/m³ | 1.35 g/cm³ | 84.28 lb/cu ft |
| 3 | 900.00 kg/m³ | 0.9 g/cm³ | 56.19 lb/cu ft |
| 5 | 540.00 kg/m³ | 0.54 g/cm³ | 33.71 lb/cu ft |
| 10 | 270.00 kg/m³ | 0.27 g/cm³ | 16.86 lb/cu ft |
Mass held at 2.7 kg.
The formula
- Kilograms per cubic meter
2.7 / (1 / 1000) - Grams per cubic centimeter
2700 / 1000 - Pounds per cubic foot
2700 * 0.062428 - Specific gravity, against water
2700 / 1000 - Floats in water
- Fraction submerged if it floats
Source: NIST Special Publication 811 — Guide for the Use of the International System of Units
Questions people actually ask
- What is specific gravity?
- Density divided by the density of water, so it is a pure ratio with no units. Water is 1, aluminium 2.7, steel about 7.85 and gold 19.3. Because it is a ratio it comes out the same whether you started in metric or imperial units, which is why brewers, jewellers and geologists all use it.
- Why does ice float?
- Because water expands when it freezes — almost uniquely among common substances. Ice is 917 kg per cubic meter against liquid water’s 1,000, so it floats with 91.7% of its bulk submerged. That is the origin of the iceberg figure, and it is a consequence of density rather than of anything about icebergs.
- Does density change with temperature?
- Yes, for everything, and a lot for gases. Water is densest at about 4 °C and expands both above and below it. For solids and liquids the change is small enough to ignore in everyday work; for air it is not, which is why an aircraft needs more runway on a hot day.
- How do I find the volume of an irregular object?
- Displace water. Fill a container to a known level, submerge the object, and the rise is the volume — a liter of rise is a liter of object. It is the method attributed to Archimedes and it is still the practical answer for anything that will not decompose into boxes.
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