Calculate the bulk modulus of a material, representing its resistance to uniform compression.
Input Parameters
m³
Pa
m³
Calculation Results
Enter parameters to calculate modulus
About this calculator
Quick Reference
VInitial Volume
ΔPPressure Change
ΔVVolume Change
βCompressibility = 1/K
Overview
The bulk modulus (K or B) of a substance is a measure of how resistant to compression that substance is. It is defined as the ratio of the infinitesimal pressure increase to the resulting relative decrease of the volume.
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Pro Tips
The change in volume (ΔV) should be negative for a positive change in pressure (ΔP).
Bulk modulus units are the same as pressure (usually Pascals or PSI).
Gases have low bulk modulus, solids and liquids have very high bulk modulus.
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Fun Facts
"Diamond has one of the highest bulk moduli of any known material (~440 GPa)."
"Water's bulk modulus is about 2.2 GPa, which is why it is often considered 'incompressible' in many engineering applications."
"The reciprocal of the bulk modulus is called the compressibility (β)."
