Does changing the shape of solid matter affect its mass?

What is Matter?
Inflate a balloon by blowing air into it. Notice that the balloon gets bigger. The amount of space the balloon takes up – its volume – increases. The air in the balloon, the balloon and even you are matter. Matter is anything that has mass and volume.

Mass is the amount of matter an object has. Mass is measured using a scale or balance and is commonly measured in kilograms, grams, ounces or pounds.

Volume is how much space the matter takes up. The foam ball and the baseball are both made of matter. Volume is commonly measured in cubic units, milliliters or liters.

Observe the foam ball and the baseball on the balance. Notice that the foam ball takes up more space than the baseball – it has a greater volume. However, the baseball has a greater density and greater mass.

Matter is made up of tiny particles, called atoms. They are the basic unit of all matter. Atoms are so small they can only be seen with special high-powered microscopes.

Matter typically exists in three forms or states – solids, liquids or gases. The state matter is in depends on the arrangement of its atoms.

States of Matter
The objects around you, such as your desk, chair, books and pencils are solid matter. Solids are matter that have a fixed shape and volume. The particles that make up solid matter are tightly packed together. This gives solid matter its rigid shape.

The shape and volume of a solid does not change when it is placed in different containers. If you take a solid and move it between different containers, its shape and volume does not change.

Water, fruit juice and cooking oil are examples of matter in a liquid state. Like solids, liquids have a fixed volume. This means the amount of space taken up by a liquid always stays the same. Like solids, liquids cannot be compressed.

Compared to a solid, the particles that make up a liquid are less tightly packed together. They are free to slide past each other. This property allows liquids to flow and change shape.

A liquid will spread out to take the shape of the container it is in. When you pour some milk from a carton or bottle into a glass, the shape of the milk changes, but the volume of the milk remains the same.

Gases are matter that can change in both shape and volume. You can’t always see gases, but they are all around you. The air you breathe is a gas. The water vapor released from a boiling kettle is also a gas.

If you take a balloon filled with air and squeeze it gently, you will notice that the shape of the balloon changes. When you let the air out of a balloon, the gas particles spread out in all directions. The gas takes the shape and fills the space of the container it is in. The particles that make up a gas are able to move about freely. This property allows gases to change in both shape and volume.

Gases can be compressed. When a gas is compressed, its volume decreases. We compress air to fill a scuba tank. Inside the scuba tank, the compressed air takes up much less space than the air around you.