Chapter 1, Problem 62E

A technique once used by geologists to measure the density of a mineral is to mix twodense liquids in such proportions that the mineral grains just float. When a sample of the mixture in which the mineral calcite just floats is put in a special density bottle, the weight is 15.4448 g. When empty, the bottle weighs 12.4631 g, and when filled with water, it weighs 13.5441 g. What is the densityof the calcite sample? (All measurements were carried out at 25 °C, and the density of water at 25 °C is 0.9970 g/mL. )

At the left, grans of the mineral calcite float the surface of the liquidbromoform $\left(d=2.890g/mL\right)$ . At the right, the grains sink to thebottom of chloroform $\left(d=1.444g/mL\right)$ . By mixing bromoform and chloroform in just the proportions required so that the grains barely float, the density of the calcite be determined (Exercise 62).