specific weight

the ratio of a body’s weight P to its volume V—that is, the quantity γ = P/V. Specific weight can also be determined from the formula γ = pg, where p is the density of a substance and g is the acceleration of free fall. Unlike density, the specific weight is not a physical or chemical characteristic of the substance, because it is a function of the value g at the location of measurement. The units used for specific weight are new-tons per cu m in the International System of Units (SI), dynes per cu cm in the cgs system, and kilograms force per cu m in the mks system (1 N/m³ = 0.1 dyne/cm³ = 0.102 kgf/m³).