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Because it has a high density... meaning that the volume increase or decrease due to altitude change is can be viewed in a practical sized barometer. If water, which had a much lower density, was used instead of Mercury, the barometer must be at least 15m high.
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∙ 14y ago
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∙ 13y agoMercury is used in barometers due to its high density. This allows mercury to be used in a small container. If you used water for example, which has a low density, your barometer would have to be around 15-34 meters tall.
Wiki User
∙ 15y agoI don't think its much used in manometers, which measures pressure. But due to its nice range of expansion and contraction over temperature it is widely used in thermometers. There is one special kind of manometer where mercury is fairly common though, and that's in the barometer, which measures the atmospheric pressure, which can be helpful if you're trying to predict weather.
Wiki User
∙ 14y agoMercury is a dense liquid with a very high boiling point and low vapor pressure. The atmospheric air pressure balances the weight of the mercury against a Torriceli vacuum that exists at the top of the column. If you used any other liquid it would flash to vapor in the vacuum and the column would be unusably tall.
Wiki User
∙ 13y agoMercury barometer is used for measuring atmospheric pressure.
Because atmospheric pressure changes with distance above or below sea level, a barometer can also be used to measure altitude.
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∙ 11y agoMercury (Hg) is preferred in a barometer because it is very dense (13.6 times that of water). Normal atmospheric pressure at sea level will support a column of Hg nearly 30 inches tall. But it will support a column of water about 30 feet high. That would be a big barometer...
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∙ 11y agoWater for all practical purposes is an uncompressible fluid. It can serve the purpose of a manometer as well as mercury. however since mercury is poisonous and dangerous, therefore water is preferred.
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∙ 12y agoWater will freeze and break the glass tube. Mercury won't. Mercury is extremely stable and won't change to a solid or a gas. Water will.
Wiki User
∙ 10y agoBecause it is a liquid with a very high density and rather low partial vapor pressure at normal temperatures.
Wiki User
∙ 8y agoA mercury barometer is an instrument used to measure atmospheric pressure.
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Before mercury what was used to fill thermometers?
Water was initially used and later on alcohol was used.
What is the barometer used for and how does it work?
A barometer is an instrument used to measure atmospheric pressure. It can measure the pressure exerted by the atmosphere by using water, air, or mercury. Pressure tendency can forecast short term changes in the weather. Numerous measurements of air pressure are used within surface weather analysis to help find surface troughs, high pressure systems, and frontal boundaries.
Pictures of instruments used to measure weather?
Some of the weather equipment are: Radars, Barometers, Thermothers, and Rain Gauges. This is just some of many and the world advances.
Why the mercury is the most used element in many thermometers?
Mercury is a liquid at room temperature and has a specific gravity which is higher than water and is not nearly as likely to vaporize as water or alcohol.
What is mercury used for now?
Being the only metal which is liquid at room temperature mercury has some specialist uses: It is also used in barometers an manometers due to its high density. From this it has also become a way of measuring pressure in millimeters of mercury. It has also been used as liquid electrolyte for the production of chlorine and sodium hydroxide from the electrolysis of brine but is again being phased out in favor of safer alternatives. It is still sometimes used in electrical switches as a liquid contact. Mercury also used to be used as a component for dental amalgams for making fillings for teeth. This process has again been phase out due to health concerns but many people still have mercury containing fillings and crematoria are thought to emit about 5kg of mercury each year simply from dental fillings. The amalgam of 70% silver and 30% tin when mixed with mercury formed a pliable material that could be inserted into the tooth and the amalgam expanded as it dried to fill the entire cavity. However this amalgam has been replaced by a similar one made from 60% silver, 27% tin and 13% copper.
What element is used for barometers?
Mercury
What element is a liquid metal used in barometers?
mercury
What instrument uses Mercury?
Historical, both thermometers and barometers have used mercury.
Why are barometers often more practical than mercury barometers?
They are more portable and can be used for airplane equipment
How is mercury used in the modern world today?
Mercury is used in thermometers barometers and flourescent lightbulbs.
Why is Mercury used in barometers?
In the mercury barometer, atmospheric pressure balances a column of mercury, the height of which can be precisely measured. Other liquids can be used in barometers, but mercury is the most common because of its great density.Mainly due to its high density
Is a liquid metal used in barometers?
Science and industrial labs often use mercury filled barometers due to mercury's high density and low vapour pressure. This allows the barometers column of liquid to be less than 1 meter high (760 mm Hg=1 atmosphere). As an additional advantage the meniscus of the mercury is upwards at the center, unlike water, making accurate reading simpler. However mercury's toxic attributes make it hazardous if spilled, so mechanical diaphragm barometers are often used.
What is Mercury used in?
Mercury was commonly used in thermometers and barometers. However, because it is poisonous, people are trying to use it in less things now.
What mercury used in?
Mercury was commonly used in thermometers and barometers. However, because it is poisonous, people are trying to use it in less things now.
What does a mercury barometer measures?
Barometers are used to measure pressure.
What units are commonly used to measured air pressure?
inches in mercury and millibars Barometers .
What element is used in a barometer?
Barometers can use any liquid. A dense liquid that makes for a short column at room temperature, is mercury.
