Capillary Flow Experiment to investigate capillary flows and phenomena onboard the International Space Station

Capillary action, capillarity, capillary motion, or wicking is the ability of a substance to draw another substance into it. The standard reference is to a tube in plants but can be seen readily with porous paper. It occurs when the adhesive intermolecular forces between the liquid and a substance are stronger than the cohesive intermolecular forces inside the liquid. The effect causes a concave meniscus to form where the substance is touching a vertical surface. The same effect is what causes porous materials such as sponges to soak up liquids. Image File history File links Size of this preview: 759 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (2553 × 2016 pixels, file size: 762 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File historyClick on a date/time to view the file as it appeared at that time. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 759 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (2553 × 2016 pixels, file size: 762 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File historyClick on a date/time to view the file as it appeared at that time. ... “ISS” redirects here. ... Dew drops adhering to a spider web For the medical condition see Adhesion (medicine) Adhesion is the molecular attraction exerted between bodies in contact. ... In physics, chemistry, and biology, intermolecular forces are forces that act between stable molecules or between functional groups of macromolecules. ... For other uses, see Liquid (disambiguation). ... Look up substance in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Mercury sticks together because of the cohesive forces. ... A: Read the bottom of a concave meniscus. ... A pore, in general, is some form of opening, usually very small. ... Polyurethane sponge Close-up A sponge is a tool consisting of porous material used for cleaning impervious surfaces. ...

A common apparatus used to demonstrate capillary action is the capillary tube. When the lower end of a vertical glass tube is placed in a liquid such as water, a concave meniscus forms. Surface tension pulls the liquid column up until there is a sufficient mass of liquid for gravitational forces to overcome the intermolecular forces. The weight of the liquid column is proportional to the square of the tube's diameter, but the contact length (around the edge) between the liquid and the tube is proportional only to the diameter of the tube, so a narrow tube will draw a liquid column higher than a wide tube. For example, a glass capillary tube 0.5 mm in diameter will lift a theoretical 2.8 cm column of water. Actual observations show shorter total distances. An apparatus (plural apparatus, apparatuses) may be one of the following: A machine. ... In astronomy, geography, geometry and related sciences and contexts, a direction passing by a given point is said to be vertical if it is locally aligned with the gradient of the gravity field, i. ... This article is about the material. ... Impact from a water drop causes an upward rebound jet surrounded by circular capillary waves. ... A: Read the bottom of a concave meniscus. ... Surface tension is an effect within the surface layer of a liquid that causes that layer to behave as an elastic sheet. ... For other uses, see Mass (disambiguation). ... This article covers the physics of gravitation. ... This article is about proportionality, the mathematical relation. ... In algebra, the square of a number is that number multiplied by itself. ... DIAMETER is a computer networking protocol for AAA (Authentication, Authorization and Accounting). ... Look up Contact in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... For other uses of this word, see Length (disambiguation). ... This article is about the material. ... A millimetre (American spelling: millimeter), symbol mm is an SI unit of length that is equal to one thousandth of a metre. ...

With some pairs of materials, such as mercury and glass, the interatomic forces within the liquid exceed those between the solid and the liquid, so a convex meniscus forms and capillary action works in reverse. material is the substance or matter from which something is or can be made, or also items needed for doing or creating something. ... General Name, Symbol, Number mercury, Hg, 80 Chemical series transition metals Group, Period, Block 12, 6, d Appearance silvery Standard atomic weight 200. ...

Examples

In hydrology, capillary action describes the attraction of water molecules to soil particles. Capillary action is responsible for moving groundwater from wet areas of the soil to dry areas. Differences in soil matric potential (Ψ_m) drive capillary action in soil. Water covers 70% of the Earths surface. ... Impact from a water drop causes an upward rebound jet surrounded by circular capillary waves. ... Loess field in Germany Surface-water-gley developed in glacial till, Northern Ireland Technically, soil forms the pedosphere: the interface between the lithosphere (rocky part of the planet) and the biosphere, atmosphere, and hydrosphere. ... Missing main definition------ someone add if you know it please. ... This does not cite any references or sources. ...

Capillary action is also essential for the drainage of constantly produced tear fluid from the eye, two canalicula of tiny diameter are present in the inner corner of the eyelid, also called the lacrimal ducts; their openings can be seen with the naked eye within the lacrimal sacs when the eyelids are everted. The tear system. ... For other uses, see Eye (disambiguation). ...

Paper towels absorb liquid through capillary action, allowing a fluid to be transferred from a surface to the towel. The small pores of a sponge act as small capillaries, causing it to adsorb a comparatively large amount of fluid. A roll of paper towel. ... Polyurethane sponge Close-up A sponge is a tool consisting of porous material used for cleaning impervious surfaces. ...

Some modern sport and exercise fabrics, such as Coolmax, use capillary action to "wick" sweat away from the skin. These are often referred to as wicking fabrics, presumably after the capillary properties of a candle wick. For other uses, see Textile (disambiguation). ... There are very few or no other articles that link to this one. ... Layered clothing means dividing clothes to layers that are worn on top of each other. ... a mechanism, known as capillary action, to transport the fuel, typically melted candle wax, to the flame. ...

Chemists utilize capillary action in thin layer chromatography, in which a solvent moves vertically up a plate via capillary action. Dissolved solutes travel with the solvent at various speeds depending on their polarity. Thin Layer Chromatography (TLC) is a chromatography technique used to separate chemical compounds [1]. It involves a stationary phase consisting of a thin layer of adsorbent material, usually silica gel, aluminium oxide, or cellulose immobilised onto a flat, inert carrier sheet. ...

Formula

With notes on the dimension in SI units, the height h of a liquid column (m) is given by:^[1] This article is about the unit of length. ...

where:

• is the liquid-air surface tension (J/m² or N/m)
• θ is the contact angle
• ρ is the density of liquid (kg/m³)
• g is acceleration due to gravity (m/s²)
• r is radius of tube (m)

For a water-filled glass tube in air at sea level, Surface tension is an effect within the surface layer of a liquid that causes that layer to behave as an elastic sheet. ... Image from a video contact angle device. ... For other uses, see Density (disambiguation). ... Acceleration is the time rate of change of velocity and/or direction, and at any point on a velocity-time graph, it is given by the slope of the tangent to the curve at that point. ... Gravity is a force of attraction that acts between bodies that have mass. ... This article is about an authentication, authorization, and accounting protocol. ... Look up air in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... For considerations of sea level change, in particular rise associated with possible global warming, see sea level rise. ...

is 0.0728 J/m² at 20 °C

θ is 20° (0.35 rad)

ρ is 1000 kg/m³

g is 9.8 m/s²

therefore, the height of the water column is given by: Celsius is, or relates to, the Celsius temperature scale (previously known as the centigrade scale). ... In mathematics and physics, the radian is a unit of angle measure. ...

.

Thus for a 2 m wide (1 m radius) tube, the water would rise an unnoticeable 0.014 mm. However, for a 2 cm wide tube, the water would rise 1.4 mm and for tube with radius 0.2 mm, the water would rise 14 cm (about 6 inches). An inch (plural: inches; symbol or abbreviation: in or, sometimes, ″ - a double prime) is the name of a unit of length in a number of different systems, including English units, Imperial units, and United States customary units. ...

Miscellaneous

Albert Einstein's first paper^[2] submitted to Annalen der Physik was on capillarity. It was titled Folgerungen aus den Capillaritätserscheinungen, which translates as Conclusions from the capillarity phenomena, found in volume 4, page 513.^[3] It was submitted in late 1900 and was published in 1901. In 1905 Einstein published four seminal papers in the same journal. “Einstein” redirects here. ... Annalen der Physik is one of the best-known and oldest (it was founded in 1799) physics journals worldwide. ... . ...

See also

• Frost flowers
• Hindu milk miracle
• Washburn's equation
• Wick effect
• Capillary fringe

Closeup view of a frost flower. ... A statue of Ganesha The Hindu milk miracle was a phenomenon reported to have occurred on September 21, 1995. ... In physics, Washburns equation describes capillary flow in porous materials. ... Spontaneous human combustion (SHC) is the burning of a persons body without the apparent presence of an external source of ignition. ... The capillary fringe , or tension-saturated zone, is the subsurface layer in which water molecules seep up from a water table by capillary action to fill pores. ...

References

1. ^ G.K. Batchelor, 'An Introduction To Fluid Dynamics', Cambridge University Press (1967)
2. ^ List of Scientific Publications of Albert Einstein
3. ^ Folgerungen aus den Capillaritätserscheinungen (in German)