Description

The position of the metacentre can be varied to produce stable and unstable equilibrium.

The equipment consists of a plastic rectangular floating pontoon where the centre of gravity can be varied by an adjustable weight which slides and can be clamped in any position on a vertical mast.

A single plumb bob is suspended from the mast which indicates the angle of heel on a calibrated scale. A weight with lateral adjustment enables the degree of heel to be varied and hence the stability of the pontoon determined.

The equipment does not require a separate water tank as it may be used on the hydraulics bench by filling the volumetric tank.

Experimental Content

• Determining the centre of gravity of the pontoon
• Determining the metacentric height and from this the position of the metacentre for the pontoon
• Varying the metacentric height with angle of heel

Technical Specifications

Max angle of heel: ±13°
Corresponding linear dimension: ±90mm