Page 1

PAP 118 Physics Lab 1a

Experiment 1
Motion in a Viscous Medium

Name of Student : EDWIN ANG CHING JITT
Name of Partner : CHENG SHENG DA JOWELL
Date of Experiment: 24-AUG-2011
Date of Report : 27-AUG-2011


Aim

The aim of this experiment is to measure the terminal velocity of spherical beads falling
under gravity in a liquid, and hence determine its viscosity using Stokes law.

Introduction

When a stationary solid object is complete or partially immersed in a fluid, it experiences
an upthrust or buoyant force. According to Archimedes principle, this buoyant force B
is given by
, g V B
s
=
where is the density of the fluid, V
s
is the immersed volume of the solid object, and g is
the acceleration due to gravity. As its name implies, this force acting on the solid object
by the fluid is always directed upwards.
If the solid object now moves through the fluid, it will have to push the fluid out
of the way. By Newtons third law, the fluid pushes back on the object with an equally
strong reaction in the opposite direction. This is experienced by the object as fluid
resistance f to its motion. Depending on the speed v of the solid object, as well as the
nature of the fluid, this fluid resistance can be proportional to the speed, i.e. f ~ v (skin
drag or viscous drag), or proportional to the square of the speed, i.e. f ~ v
2
(form drag or
inertial drag). Viscous drag is the dominant fluid resistance at low Reynolds numbers,
whereas inertial drag is the dominant fluid resistance at high Reynolds numbers. The
Reynolds number
q
vL
= Re
is a dimensionless ratio of inertial forces to viscous forces. Here, is the density of the
fluid, v is the typical speed of the fluid flow, L is the typical distance the fluid has to flow
around, and is the viscosity of the fluid.




Page 2


For a sphere of radius r moving with speed v in an infinite fluid with viscosity ,
the viscous drag has been worked out by Sir George Stokes in 1851 to be
, 6 v r f q t =
(1)
if the fluid at the surface of the sphere is always at rest with respect to the sphere. This
has since come to be known as Stokes law. In this experiment, spherical beads are
dropped into a highly viscous liquid detergent and allowed to reach terminal velocity v
T
.
At terminal velocity, the three forces acting on the bead (see Figure 1) balance each other,
and we have
,
3
4
6
3
g r v r B f mg
T
t q t + = + =
which can be rewritten as
.
6
3
4
3
T
rv
g r mg
t
t
q

=
(2)
Through careful measurements of m, the mass of the bead, r, the radius of the bead, and
v
T
, the terminal velocity of the bead, this equation can be used to determine , the
viscosity of the liquid detergent.


Figure 1. Freebody diagram of spherical bead falling under gravity through a viscous fluid. Besides its
weight W = mg, the bead is also acted upon by the buoyant force B, and the drag force f.
Experimental
Preliminary Observations

In the first part of the experiment, we weighed beads of 3 different sizes (B1, B2 and B3)
immersed in a beaker of liquid detergent, when it is (a) suspended on a thread; (b) resting
on the bottom of the beaker; (c) suspended on the same thread as in (a); (d) pulled
upwards slowly; and (e) allowed to fall slowly. These are recorded as (a) R1, (b) R2, (c)
R3, (d) R4 and (e) R5 respectively, where R1 to R5 represents the readings on the
electronic balance for each of the 5 cases from (a) to (e) respectively. Before each
reading is taken, the beaker of liquid detergent is allowed to settle on the electronic
balance without the bead until a steady reading is observed; then, the electronic balance is
tared for calibration. Also, the side window of the casing on top of the electronic balance
is closed before any reading is taken to minimize the effect of moving air on the accuracy
of the readings by applying undue downward force on the balance, thus, introducing new
variables that might add on to the true readings.

Page 3


Before recording R1, R2 and R3, we took care to allow the bead to come to rest, and the
reading on the electronic balance to stabilize. While recording R4 and R5, we noted the
extent of the fluctuations in the electronic balance readings, and also any increasing or
decreasing trends in the average reading. Consider 5 readings from R1 to R5 respectively
to be one complete set of readings, 3 sets of readings (i.e. 1
st
, 2
nd
, 3
rd
reading) are taken
for bead of each size. For reading R1, the average from the 3 sets of readings are
calculated; then, the averages of R2 to R5 are also calculated. The list of averages from
R1 to R5 are tabulated as the 4
th
set of reading. The 4
th
reading for beads B1, B2, and B3
respectively are taken as the data to support the explanation of the physical forces present
for all cases (a) to (e).
Measurement of Terminal Velocity

To measure the terminal velocities of beads falling through the Mama Lemon liquid
detergent, we set up the experiment as shown in Figure 2. First we ensured that the
column is vertical, by viewing it from three different angles. Then we dropped five beads
of each size, each as close to the centre of the column as possible. If a bead drifted too
close to the wall of the column, the trial was rejected, and another bead of the same size
was dropped again to replace the trial.

Figure 2. Experimental setup to measure the terminal velocity of a bead falling through a liquid detergent.

For each accepted trial, we recorded the stopwatch times t when the bottom of the bead
reached each 2-cm mark x on the metric taped stuck to the column. We then plotted a
graph of x against t for each accepted trial. Fitting the graph for large times to a straight
line, we determined the terminal velocity v
T
for a trial as the slope of the straight line.
For each bead size, we averaged v
T
over the five trials, before we use Equation (2) to
determine the viscosity of the liquid detergent.

Page 4


Results & Discussions
Preliminary Observations

Small Bead (B1)

Case (1
st
Reading)/g
0.001
(2
nd
Reading)/g
0.001
(3
rd
Reading)/g
0.001
(Mean Reading)/g
0.001
Compare
R1 0.079 0.078 0.078 0.078 ~Same
R2 0.067 0.068 0.069 0.068
R3 0.080 0.081 0.079 0.080 ~Same
R4 0.022 0.019 0.027 0.023 Lowest
R5 0.086 0.084 0.083 0.084 Highest

Medium Bead (B2)

Case (1
st
Reading)/g
0.001
(2
nd
Reading)/g
0.001
(3
rd
Reading)/g
0.001
(Mean Reading)/g
0.001
Compare
R1 0.138 0.123 0.130 0.130 Same
1
R2 0.191 0.189 0.188 0.189 ~Highest
R3 0.134 0.129 0.127 0.130 Same
1
R4 0.000 0.016 0.042 0.019 Lowest
R5 0.190 0.189 0.191 0.190 ~Highest

Large Bead (B3)

Case (1
st
Reading)/g
0.001
(2
nd
Reading)/g
0.001
(3
rd
Reading)/g
0.001
(Mean Reading)/g
0.001
Compare
R1 0.702 0.703 0.704 0.703 ~Same
R2 0.920 0.924 0.923 0.922
R3 0.700 0.702 0.701 0.701 ~Same
R4 0.470 0.599 0.522 0.530 Lowest
R5 0.946 0.949 0.935 0.943 Highest

Firstly, a beaker of detergent is placed on an electronic balance. Then, the balance is tared
so that the effect of the weight of beaker is not reflected in the reading and the change is
reading is solely due to the cases R1 to R5 respectively.

The small bead (B1) was first used to test for cases R1 to R5. However, the data in R2
showed a contradiction to the predicted result from the analysis of physical forces.







Page 5


Analysis of Physical Forces

R1/R3
In figure 3, as the bead is in equilibrium, there
should be zero net force acting on the bead. Thus,
the forces follow the equation:



such that, W=Weight of bead
B =Buoyant Force on bead
T =Tension of thread on bead

According to Newtons 3
rd
Law, the buoyant
force by detergent on bead will have an equal
and opposite force by bead on detergent and, thus,
on the electronic balance (B).

In figure 4, as the bead is in equilibrium, there
should be zero net force acting on the bead. Thus,
the forces follow the equation:

() ()

such that: R =reaction force by table on
electronic balance
B =reaction force of B
W(eb) =weight of electronic
balance
W(bk)=weight of beaker

From figure 4, the reading on the electronic
balance is proportional to the sum of W(bk) and
B, as both forces act downwards on the sensor of
the balance. However, as the balance is tared, W(bk) equals constant zero. As such,
reading is dependent only on B. From this, I can also deduce that, since B=B and B is
constant anywhere in the detergent, the reading should be independent of the relative
position of bead in the detergent, provided the bead is fully submerged and the density of
detergent is the same throughout.

With this deduction, cases R1 and R3 are the same and can be represented in the same
way. However, there is a possibility that R3 values may be lower than R1. As R2
involved submerged part of the thread in the detergent, when the thread is then raised to
take reading for R3, some detergent may stick to the thread and be lifted above the
surface of the detergent. Thus, there may be a net decrease in the mass of detergent in the
beaker. This can be proven if by lifting the bead out of the detergent, and allowing all
detergent to drip back into the beaker, the balance shows a negative reading.
Figure 3: Free-body diagram of Bead
(R1/R3)
Figure 4: Free-body diagram of
Electronic Balance (R1/R3)


Page 6


R2
In figure 5, as the bead is in equilibrium, there
should be zero net force acting on the bead. Thus,
the forces follow the equation:



such that, W=Weight of bead
B =Buoyant Force on bead
N =Reaction Force by Electronic
Balance on Bead

According to Newtons 3
rd
Law, N will have an
equal and opposite force by bead on electronic
balance (N).

In figure 6, as the bead is in equilibrium, there
should be zero net force acting on the bead. Thus,
the forces follow the equation:

() ()

such that: B =Reaction force of B
N =Reaction force of N

From figure 6, the reading on the electronic
balance is proportional to the sum of B and N,
as all 3 forces act downwards on the sensor of the
balance. Comparing this to the reading in R1
which is proportional to only B, the reading in
R2 should be larger than R1. However, the R2
reading for B1 in the table (mean = 0.068g) is
lower than R1 (mean = 0.078g), thus, reflecting a
contradiction with the predicted result.

To address this contradiction, we regarded the reading for R2 in B1 as an anomaly, and
repeated the experiment with B2 and B3. The results in B2 and B3 show conclusively
that the reading for R2 should be larger than R1.









Figure 6: Free-Body Diagram of
Electronic Balance (R2)
Figure 5: Free-body diagram of Bead (R2)

Page 7



R4
In figure 7, as the bead is in equilibrium when it
is travelling at constant velocity, there should be
zero net force acting on the bead. Thus, the
forces follow the equation:



such that, W=Weight of bead
B =Buoyant Force on bead
T =Tension of thread on bead
D = Drag on bead

According to Newtons 3
rd
Law, D will have an
equal and opposite force by bead on electronic
balance (D).

In figure 8, as the bead is in equilibrium, there
should be zero net force acting on the bead. Thus,
the forces follow the equation:

() ()

such that: B =Reaction force of B
D =Reaction force of D

From figure 6, the reading on the electronic
balance is proportional to (B-D), as D acts in
the direction opposite to B. As it is impossible
for a human hand to lift bead up continuously at
exactly the same velocity, there is a large margin
of human error, resulting in a large range of
fluctuating readings. However, the readings show a general decreasing trend as the
upward velocity increases from rest. This is because Drag (D) is proportional to speed at
relatively slow speeds; thus, as the magnitude of velocity (i.e. the speed) increases, D also
increases, resulting in a decrease in (B-D) for D=D.

In addition, it is possible for the reading to turn negative because B<D, B-D<0. This
can happen when the lifting speed increases continuously, causing the reading to decrease
from positive to zero and to negative.






Figure 7:Free-body diagram of Bead (R4)
Figure 8: Free-Body Diagram of
Electronic Balance (R4)

Page 8


R5
In figure 9, as the bead is initially in
disequilibrium, there should be non-zero net
force acting on the bead. Thus, the forces follow
the equation:



such that, W =Weight of bead
B =Buoyant Force on bead
D =Drag of detergent on bead

Drag Force(D) changes as the bead accelerate
downwards in the detergent due to gravity. As
speed of bead increases, D increases and, thus,
(B+D) increases. Equilibrium is attained when:



Such that, <D> = Drag on bead at its
terminal velocity

Then, bead will travel downwards at constant
speed towards the base of the beaker.

In Figure 10, as the bead is in equilibrium, there
should be zero net force acting on the bead. Thus,
the forces follow the equation:

() ()

Such that, B =Reaction force of B
D =Reaction force of D

From Figure 10, the reading on the electronic balance is proportional to (B+D). As such,
the reading R5 should stabilise when the terminal velocity is reached, when drag(D) takes
a fixed value <D>.

From R2,
From R5,
As such, N=<D>;
N= D at terminal velocity(v
T
);
(B+N)=(B+D at v
T
).

Thus, reading R2=reading R5 at v
T
. This is supported by reading R2 (mean = 0.189g) and
R5 (mean = 0.190g) in B2.

Figure 10: Free-Body Diagram of
Electronic Balance (R5)
Figure 9: Free-Body Diagram of Bead (R5)

Page 9


Measurement of Terminal Velocity

The 3 tables below show the time taken for beads (B1, B2, B3) to travel a distance of
5cm downwards for 9 different intervals along the plastic column. There are 5 repeated
measurements for bead of each size.

Reading x/cm
T
1
/s for B1
1a 1b 1c 1d 1e
1 5--10 30.90 31.81 31.05 30.75 30.98
2 11--16 29.97 31.10 30.80 30.30 30.75
3 17--22 29.69 29.96 29.90 30.10 30.68
4 23--28 29.41 30.19 30.18 30.15 30.70
5 29--34 29.93 29.60 30.17 29.58 29.80
6 35--40 29.69 29.50 29.61 28.67 28.96
7 41--46 28.40 28.81 29.54 28.70 29.05
8 47--52 28.53 28.57 28.89 29.03 28.93
9 53--58 28.40 28.53 28.87 28.90 28.80

Reading x/cm
T
3
/s for B3
3a 3b 3c 3d 3e
1 5--10 8.87 9.08 9.04 9.07 8.97
2 11--16 8.74 8.34 8.56 8.89 8.89
3 17--22 8.37 8.53 8.71 8.80 8.76
4 23--28 8.49 8.31 8.30 8.53 8.81
5 29--34 8.29 8.37 8.19 8.19 8.56
6 35--40 8.41 8.50 8.56 8.20 8.30
7 41--46 8.30 8.75 8.74 8.75 8.42
8 47--52 8.47 8.76 8.40 8.64 8.68
9 53--58 8.23 8.65 8.35 8.56 8.54

Reading x/cm
T
2
/s for B2
2a 2b 2c 2d 2e
1 5--10 17.87 17.95 17.94 17.97 17.79
2 11--16 17.33 17.90 17.79 17.97 17.60
3 17--22 17.02 16.90 16.91 17.13 17.35
4 23--28 16.60 16.98 17.03 16.88 17.00
5 29--34 16.80 17.03 16.97 16.85 17.10
6 35--40 16.50 16.98 17.04 16.92 17.16
7 41--46 16.88 17.22 17.12 16.68 16.95
8 47--52 16.79 16.97 17.09 16.85 16.62
9 53--58 16.84 17.03 16.99 16.89 16.73



Page
10


Graph of time taken for a bead to travel 5cm (s) against reading number, which represents
the distance (x) along the plastic column, is plotted for B1, B2, and B3 respectively.





Small Bead (B1)
Medium Bead (B2)
T
1
T
2

Page
11




The 3 graphs above show the rough fit of a downward trend for the initial readings. From
the graphs, time (T) appears to approach a particular constant as the gradient of graph
tend towards zero. As velocity is displacement per unit time, by fixing the value of
displacement for each reading at 5cm, when the change in time taken(T) for multiple
subsequent readings (near the final reading 9
th
reading) becomes increasingly smaller,
this means that the velocity of bead also approaches a constant value i.e. terminal
velocity (v
t
).

Referring to all 3 graphs above, the time taken (T) generally appears to approach a
constant after the 5
th
reading (29-34cm). Therefore, the average time taken can be
calculated by taking only the values of (T) for the last 5 readings 5
th
, 6
th
, 7
th
, 8
th
, and 9
th

reading.












Large Bead (B3)
T
3

Page
12


The 3 tables below show the mean time taken for a bead to travel 5cm for measurements
of time when value of x exceeds 29cm average of readings 5 to 9 for all 5 sets of
measurements respectively.

Small Bead (B1)
Reading 1a 1b 1c 1d 1e
Average reading
for x>29/s
28.99 29.00 29.42 28.98 29.11
Final Average/s 29.10

Medium Bead (B2)
Reading 2a 2b 2c 2d 2e
Average reading
for x>29/s
16.76 17.05 17.04 16.84 16.91
Final Average/s 16.92

Large Bead (B3)
Reading 3a 3b 3c 3d 3e
Average reading
for x>29/s
8.34 8.61 8.45 8.47 8.50
Final Average/s 8.47

Page
13


The table below shows the measurement of mass of bead B1, B2, and B3 respectively
with 3 repeated readings, in order to calculate the average mass of bead. Calibrated
electronic balance was used.

M
1
/g 0.001 M
2
/g 0.001 M
3
/g 0.001 <M>/g 0.001
B1 0.069 0.070 0.070 0.070
B2 0.182 0.182 0.182 0.182
B3 0.937 0.936 0.937 0.937

The table below shows the measurement of diameter of bead B1, B2 and B3 respectively
with 3 repeated readings, in order to calculate the average diameter of bead. Micrometer
Screw Gauge was used. Then, the average radius of bead for all 3 sizes are determined.

D
1
/mm 0.01 D
2
/mm 0.01 D
3
/mm 0.01 <D>/mm 0.01 <r>/mm 0.005
B1 4.58 4.58 4.59 4.58 2.290
B2 6.31 6.31 6.32 6.31 3.155
B3 10.95 10.95 10.95 10.95 5.575

Computation of uncertainty values
Calculate of absolute uncertainty of V
T

AV
T
=
Ax
x
|
\

|
.
|
2
+
At
t
|
\

|
.
|
2
|
\

|
.
| V
T

For small bead (B1),
) 17182 . 0 (
10 . 29
01 . 0
0 . 5
1 . 0
2 2
|
|
.
|

\
|
|
.
|

\
|
+
|
.
|

\
|
= A
T
V
= 3.436933 x 10
-3
cm s
-1



= 3.4 x 10
-5
m s
-1


For medium bead (B2),
) 29551 . 0 (
92 . 16
01 . 0
0 . 5
1 . 0
2 2
|
|
.
|

\
|
|
.
|

\
|
+
|
.
|

\
|
= A
T
V
= 5.91278 x 10
-3
cm s
-1


= 5.9 x 10
-5
m s
-1


For large bead (B3),
) 590319 . 0 (
47 . 8
01 . 0
0 . 5
1 . 0
2 2
|
|
.
|

\
|
|
.
|

\
|
+
|
.
|

\
|
= A
T
V
= 1.18269 x 10
-2
cm s
-1

= 1.2 x 10
-4
m s
-1


Page
14



Calculation of absolute uncertainty of radius

Ar =
Ad
2
, Where

d is diameter of bead, r is radius of bead

For beads of all sizes
2
01 . 0
= Ar
= 0.005 mm
= 5 x 10
-3
m

Calculation of absolute uncertainty of volume of sphere


AV
b
= 3
Ar
r
|
\

|
.
|
2
V
b
, Where V
b
is volume of bead

For small bead (B1),
) 3031 . 50 (
) 290 . 2 (
) 005 . 0 (
3
2
|
|
.
|

\
|
= A
b
V
= 0.329497 mm
3
= 3.3 x 10
-10
m
3

For medium bead (B2),
) 549 . 131 (
) 155 . 3 (
) 005 . 0 (
3
2
|
|
.
|

\
|
= A
b
V
= 0.625430 mm
3
= 6.3 x 10
-10
m
3


For large bead (B3),
) 810 . 725 (
) 575 . 5 (
) 005 . 0 (
3
2
|
|
.
|

\
|
= A
b
V
= 1.95285 mm
3
= 2.0 x 10
-9
m
3


Calculation of Viscosity
Using the average values of V
T
, the radius of the beads, mass of the bead, density of the
detergent, we can calculate the viscosity

q using equation (2);

For smallest bead
.
) 17182 . 0 )( 229 . 0 ( 6
) 981 )( 207 . 1 ( ) 229 . 0 (
3
4
) 981 ( 070 . 0
3
t
t
q

=
= 12.2800 g cm s
-2
/ cm
2
s
-1

= 1.22800 Pa s

Page
15


= 1228.0 m Pa s
= 1228 cps

Difference compared to accepted reading = (1410 1228)/(1410) x 100%
= 12.9%

For medium bead
.
) 29551 . 0 )( 3155 . 0 ( 6
) 981 )( 207 . 1 ( ) 3155 . 0 (
3
4
) 981 ( 182 . 0
3
t
t
q

=
= 12.9620 g cm s
-2
/ cm
2
s
-1
= 1.29620 Pa s
= 1296.20 m Pa s
= 1296 cps

Difference compared to accepted reading = (1410 1296)/(1410) x 100%
= 8.08511%
For large bead
.
) 590319 . 0 )( 5575 . 0 ( 6
) 981 )( 207 . 1 ( ) 5575 . 0 (
3
4
) 981 ( 937 . 0
3
t
t
q

=
= 9.63800 g cm s
-2
/ cm
2
s
-1

= 0.963800 Pa s
= 963.800 m Pa s
= 964 cps

Difference compared to accepted reading = (1410 964)/(1410) x 100%
= 31.6%

Average

q = (1228.0 + 1296.2 + 963.8) / 3
= 1162.7 m Pa s
= 1163 cps

Difference compared to accepted reading = (1410 1163)/(1410) x 100%
= 17.5%












Page
16


Calculation of absolute uncertainty of viscosity

Aq =
AV
b
V
b
|
\

|
.
|
2
+
Ar
r
|
\

|
.
|
2
+
AV
T
V
T
|
\

|
.
|
2
|
\


|
.
|
|
q

For small bead,
1228
172 . 0
10 * 4 . 3
290 . 2
005 . 0
10 * 0 . 5
10 * 3 . 3
2
5
2 2
8
10
|
|
.
|

\
|
|
|
.
|

\
|
+
|
|
.
|

\
|
+
|
|
.
|

\
|
= A

q
= 8.5 cps

For medium bead,
1296
296 . 0
10 * 9 . 5
3155 . 0
005 . 0
10 * 3 . 1
10 * 3 . 6
2
5
2
2
7
10
|
|
.
|

\
|
|
|
.
|

\
|
+ |
.
|

\
|
+
|
|
.
|

\
|
= A

q
= 21.5 cps

For large bead,
964
590 . 0
10 * 2 . 1
5575 . 0
005 . 0
10 * 3 . 7
10 * 0 . 2
2
4
2
2
7
9
|
|
.
|

\
|
|
|
.
|

\
|
+ |
.
|

\
|
+
|
|
.
|

\
|
= A

q
= 9.04 cps

As such, average of

Aq = (8.5 + 21.5 + 9.04) / 3
= 13.0 cps

From the calculated results above, we can see that the viscosity values for the small and
medium beads are relatively nearer to the actual value of 1410cps, whereas the viscosity
value for the large bead drifted quite far away from the actual value, with a deviation of
31.6% (highest among the 3).

In overall, this deviation can also be seen as possible evidence to prove the direct causal
relationship between size of bead and the viscosity of the liquid detergent. This means
that change in bead size may directly cause a change in the viscosity of detergent around
its motion pathway.

On the other hand, the constant negative deviation from the actual viscosity for all 3
values of viscosity being lower than the actual value can also suggest that detergent is a
non-Newtonian fluid, making the procedure of determination of viscosity in this
experiment less ideal as the final value would be less predictable.






Page
17


Systematic error
The true viscosity value of 1410cps is most determined in a highly controlled
environment where factors like surrounding temperature, and pressure are carefully
maintained to be constant. Besides, the equipment that we use may be inferior to the
equipment used to determine the true value in terms of accuracy and precision.

Human error
In the measurement of time with a stopwatch, human reaction error can be a significant
factor in determining the accuracy of the measurement. For we have to take readings
while the bead is in motion falling through the column of detergent, the accuracy of the
readings really depend on the reaction time of the person measuring the time and his
ability to multi-task as he needs to measure time with a stopwatch, while observing the
scale on column. This effect is amplified with the large bead, as it has a higher terminal
velocity and will travel faster through the column. As the ratio of human reaction time to
the final measurement of time increases, there is a higher percentage error which might
explain the large deviation for the large bead (B3) of 31.6% for calculated viscosity value
through this experiment.

Conclusions

We measured the terminal velocities of beads of three different sizes falling through a
column of Mama Lemon liquid detergent, and found these to be v
T
= (171.83.4)*10
-5

m/s, (295.55.9)*10
-5
m/s, and (59.01.2)*10
-4
m/s for the small, medium, and large
beads respectively. Assuming that the viscous drag experienced by the bead is given by
Stokes law in Equation (1), we inferred the viscosity of the liquid detergent to be
1162.713.0 cps. This differs by 17.5% from the accepted value of 1410 cps. We
believe this deviation is largely due to human error as the time needed for humans to
react consistently produce a random error to our measurement of time. As such, we
cannot accurately determine the viscosity value as time is one of the few most important
factors that is used to calculate the final value of viscosity.
References

Physics for Scientists and Engineers with Modern Physics 8
th
Edition, by John W. Jewett,
Jr. Raymond A. Serway.

Wikipedia.org

http://www.physics.unc.edu