If a flexible air-filled container at 100 feet of sea water has a volume of 10 cu ft, what would be the volume if it were transported to the surface?

At a depth of 100 feet of sea water, the pressure exerted on the flexible air-filled container is significantly higher than at the surface due to the weight of the water above it. According to Boyle’s Law, which states that pressure and volume are inversely related for a gas at constant temperature, as pressure decreases, the volume of a gas increases.

When the container is brought to the surface, the pressure acting on it decreases from the pressure at 100 feet, which is approximately 4 atmospheres (1 atmosphere for the surface plus 3 atmospheres due to the water column). At surface level, the pressure is 1 atmosphere.

Since the initial volume of the container at 100 feet is 10 cubic feet under higher pressure, when it reaches the surface and the pressure decreases to 1 atmosphere, the volume expands. Using Boyle’s Law:

P1 * V1 = P2 * V2

Substituting in the values:

• P1 = 4 atm (pressure at 100 ft)

• V1 = 10 cu ft (initial volume)

• P2 = 1 atm (pressure at the surface)

• V2 = final volume (unknown)

Using the equation:

(4 atm) *