What volume reduction occurs when taking a flexible bag of air from the surface to depth?

When considering how the volume of air in a flexible bag changes with depth, it is important to understand the principles of buoyancy and gas laws, specifically Boyle's Law. Boyle's Law states that at a constant temperature, the pressure of a gas is inversely proportional to its volume. This means that as the pressure increases (with depth), the volume of the gas decreases.

At the surface, the pressure is 1 atmosphere (atm). As you descend underwater, every 10 meters (or approximately 33 feet) of sea water exerts an additional pressure of about 1 atm. For example, at a depth of 10 meters, the total pressure in the water would be 2 atm (1 atm from the atmosphere plus 1 atm from the water).

When taking a flexible bag of air from the surface to this depth of 10 meters, the volume of the air would reduce to half of its original volume due to the increase in pressure. Therefore, if the flexible bag starts with a volume of V at the surface, at 10 meters depth, the volume will compress to V/2.

The answer reflects a fundamental aspect of diving physics, where as a diver goes deeper, the volume of air spaces (like a flexible