Question

Copper has a specific gravity of 8.9: what does this mean?

Answer 1

By definition, the specific gravity (or relative density) of a material is a ratio of the density of that material to the density of water at `4^@C` which is the temperature at which water has its maximum density.

Ie. `SG_s=rho_(rel)=rho_s/(rho_(H_2O at 4^@C)`.

So if copper has a relative density of 8.9, it means that at `4^@C`, copper is 8.9 times more dense than water.