Bulk modulus is defined as the proportion of volumetric stress related to the volumetric strain for any material. In much simpler words, the bulk modulus is nothing but a numerical constant that is used to measure and describe the elastic properties of a solid or a fluid when pressure is applied. In this article, we will discuss the bulk modulus formula with examples. Let us learn this interesting property of material!

Definition

The bulk modulus property of the material is related to its behaviour of elasticity. It is one of the measures of mechanical properties of solids. Other such elastic moduli are Young’s modulus and Shear modulus. In all cases, the bulk elastic properties of a material are used to find out how much it will compress under a given amount of external pressure. It is very important to find the ratio of the change in pressure to the fractional volume compression.

The Bulk Modulus is defined as the relative change in the volume of a body produced by a unit compressive or tensile stress acting throughout the surface uniformly.

The bulk modulus describes how a substance reacts when it is compressed uniformly. It is a fact that when the external forces are perpendicular to the surface, it is distributed uniformly over the surface of the object. This may also occur when an object is immersed in a fluid and undergo a change in volume without a change in shape.

The δ P is volume stress and we define it as the ratio of the magnitude of the change in the amount of force δ F to the surface area. The bulk modulus of any liquid is a measure of its compressibility. We computed it as the pressure required to bring about a unit change in its volume.

Bulk modulus formula is –

Where,

The units for the bulk modulus is Pa or KPa and MPa as higher units.

We represent it with a symbol of K. Its dimension is force per unit area. We express it in the units of newton per square meter (N/m²) in the metric system.