{{Short description|Highest attainable density of a substance under given conditions}} The '''maximum density''' of a substance is the highest attainable density of the substance under given conditions.

==Attaining maximum density== Almost all known substances undergo thermal expansion in response to heating, meaning that a given mass of substance contracts to a low volume at low temperatures, when little thermal energy is present. Substances, especially fluids in which intermolecular forces are weak, also undergo compression upon the application of pressure. Nearly all substances therefore reach a density maximum at very low temperatures and very high pressures, characteristic properties of the solid state of matter.

==Water== {{further|Water (molecule)#Density of water and ice}}

An especially notable irregular maximum density is that of water, which reaches a density peak at {{convert|4|°C|°F}}. This has important ramifications in Earth's ecosystem.<ref name="Lynden-BellMorris2010">{{cite book|author1=Ruth M. Lynden-Bell|author2=Simon Conway Morris|author3=John D. Barrow |author4=John L. Finney |author5=Charles Harper |title=Water and Life: The Unique Properties of H2O|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZJzMBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA78|date=21 May 2010|publisher=CRC Press|isbn=978-1-4398-0357-8|pages=78–}}</ref>

==References== {{Reflist}}

==See also==

* List of elements by density * Density * Specific Gravity * Specific weight * Charge density * Buoyancy * Hydrometer

Category:Mass density Category:Condensed matter physics Category:Physical chemistry Category:Physical quantities

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