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Surely when we observe how water and oil do not mix, we have wondered what the density of oil is. And especially that of olive oil, which is after all the reference cooking olive oil across the Mediterranean.
At first glance, and by common sense, we can already guess that the density of olive oil is lower than that of water, since it stays on its surface. And we are right — but how is it measured, and what values does it take?
Density of olive oil
The density of oil depends on several factors — it is a property that changes with temperature and the type of olive oil in question. Thus, when the temperature rises and the oil expands, its density decreases. Y si baja la temperatura, ocurre lo contrario.
Furthermore, the type of oil also influences its density. It is worth clarifying first that there are two types of oils: vegetable and mineral. Vegetable oils come, as their name suggests, from different plants such as olives, coconut, palm, etc. And each vegetable oil has a different density. Mineral oil, on the other hand, comes from the distillation of crude petroleum, resulting in a clear, colourless and odourless oil. It also has a different density.
And how is density measured? A weight-per-volume unit is used for this purpose, such as kilograms per litre (kg/l). If we take the density of water as a reference — which is 1 kg/l — it gives us a useful benchmark to understand the density of any given substance.
The density values of the different types of vegetable and mineral oils at a temperature of 20°C range between 0.840 and 0.960 kg/l. We can clearly see that this density is different from and lower than that of water, which is why oil does not mix with it and remains on its surface.
And the density of olive oil?
Specifically, when it comes to olive oil, its density value ranges between 0.913 and 0.916 kg/l at a temperature of 20°C. Very similar to that of other vegetable oils.
Now that you know more about olive oil, why not taste it for yourself? At La Tinaja del Gourmet we offer a carefully curated selection of award-winning Spanish extra virgin olive oils, harvested at their peak — and we ship across Europe.
That’s all for this article — we hope it has satisfied your curiosity. See you in the next post!
