Wikibooks: Planet Earth/5b. Properties of Earth’s Water (Density, Salinity, Oxygen, and Carbonic Acid)

• Format: Book
• Language: English
• Subjects: Carbonic acid
• Online Access: https://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Planet_Earth/5b._Properties_of_Earth%E2%80%99s_Water_(Density,_Salinity,_Oxygen,_and_Carbonic_Acid)

Nav = Properties of Earth’s Water = As one of the most abundant molecules on Earth’s surface and one vital to life water plays an important role in the very dynamic nature of Earth particularly how water interacts with the rocks the soil and the atmosphere and how it changes depending on its depth in the Earth’s oceans. =Water Density= Density is the mass per unit volume of a substance which means that an equal volume of a substance with high density will weigh more than an equal volume of a substance with low density. Liquid water has a density of 1 gram per milliliter (1 g/ml) or 1 gram per cubic centimeter (1 g/cm 3 ). This makes comparing the density of water to other substances both liquids and solids easy. Specific density is the density of water compared to other substances. For example a solid cube that floats in a glass of water will have a specific density less than 1 while a solid cube that sinks will have a specific density of more than 1. A is a special tool used to measure the specific density of water or other liquids in a solution by floating a standardized weight in the water to be measured. Liquids with different specific densities will organize in layers with the least dense liquid at the top and most dense at the bottom. A mixture of liquids with different densities may take time to form layers as they reach equilibrium and as long as the individual liquids do not go into solution with each other. In large bodies of water on Earth differences in densities can stratify the water in lakes and oceans into different layers with depth. Water’s density varies with temperature such that pure water will have a density of 1 at 4°C but water heated to the boiling point will have a density of 0.959 at 100°C. This means warm water will float on top of cold water. If the water is heated from the bottom convection will cause the warm water to rise and more evenly distribute heat however if water is heated at the surface the warmer water will remain near the surface because it will be less dense ...