Pressure of Liquid

Pressure of Liquid

The normal force (or thrust) exerted by liquid at rest per unit area of the surface in contact with it, is called pressure of liquid or hydrostatic pressure.

If F is the normal force acting on a surface area A in contact with liquid, then pressure exerted by liquid on this surface is P = F/A

Unit Of Pressure

SI unit :- Nm^-2 or pascal (denoted by Pa)

CGS unit :- dyne cm^-2

Dimensional Formula Of Pressure

[ML^-1T^-2]

Pressure due to liquid is a scalar quantity

At one level inside the liquid, pressure acts in all directions and a definite direction is not associated with it. So a definite direction is not associated with the pressure due to liquid. Hence it is a scalar quantity.