Lab 2: Aluminum Foil Lab

Lab 2: Determining the Thickness of Aluminum Foil


Procedure: The first step we completed was to identify what we needed to measure, which was the thickness of a sheet of aluminum foil. We were given the information that aluminum foil has a density of 2.70 grams/centimeter^3. Next, my group massed the sheet of aluminum foil and found it to be 0.49 grams. Then, we measured the length and width of the aluminum foil and found both the length and width were 10.90 centimeters long. Therefore, we had the information we needed to input into the formula density = mass / volume; density was 2.70 grams/centimeter^3, the mass was 0.49 grams, and the volume was length x width x height, or 10.90 x 10.90 x height. Therefore, the equation would become 2.70 = 0.49 / (10.90 x 10.90 x height). We solved algebraically for the value of the height and found it to be 1.5 x 10^-3 centimeters. Finally, we converted the answer from centimeters into millimeters for a final answer of 1.5 x 10^-2 millimeters.

Data: The final answer we found was that the thickness of aluminum foil is 1.5 x 10^-2 millimeters.