Capillary Flow Experiment to investigate capillary flows and phenomena aboard 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. Adhesion is the tendency of certain dissimilar molecules to cling together due to Attractive forces. In Physics, Chemistry, and Biology, intermolecular forces are forces that act between stable Molecules or between functional groups of Liquid is one of the principal States of matter. A liquid is a Fluid that has the particles loose and can freely form a distinct surface at the boundaries of Cohesion ( n. lat cohaerere "stick or stay together" or cohesive attraction or cohesive force is a Physical property The effect causes a concave meniscus to form where the substance is touching a vertical surface. For other uses see Meniscus (anatomy and lens (optics. Meniscus, plural menisci, from the Greek for "crescent" The same effect is what causes porous materials such as sponges to soak up liquids. Porosity is a measure of the void spaces in a material and is measured as a fraction between 0–1 or as a Percentage between 0–100% A sponge is a Tool, Implement, Utensil or cleaning aid consisting of porous material

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. In Astronomy, Geography, Geometry and related sciences and contexts a direction passing by a given point is said to be vertical if Glass in the common sense refers to a Hard, Brittle, transparent Solid, such as that used for Windows many Water is a common Chemical substance that is essential for the survival of all known forms of Life. For other uses see Meniscus (anatomy and lens (optics. Meniscus, plural menisci, from the Greek for "crescent" Surface tension pulls the liquid column up until there is a sufficient mass of liquid for gravitational forces to overcome the intermolecular forces. For the work of fiction see Surface Tension (short story. Surface tension is a property of the surface of a Liquid that causes it to Mass is a fundamental concept in Physics, roughly corresponding to the Intuitive idea of how much Matter there is in an object Newton 's law of universal Gravitation is a physical law describing the gravitational attraction between bodies with mass 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. This article is about proportionality the mathematical relation In Algebra, the square of a number is that number multiplied by itself Geometry, a diameter of a Circle is any straight Line segment that passes through the center of the circle and whose Endpoints are on the Length is the long Dimension of any object The length of a thing is the distance between its ends its linear extent as measured from end to end For example, a glass capillary tube 0. Glass in the common sense refers to a Hard, Brittle, transparent Solid, such as that used for Windows many 5 mm in diameter will lift approximately a 2. The Millimetre ( American spelling: millimeter, symbol mm) is a unit of Length in the Metric system, equal to 8 mm column of water.

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. Materials are physical Substances used as inputs to production or Manufacturing. Mercury (ˈmɜrkjʊri also called quicksilver or hydrargyrum, is a Chemical element with the symbol Hg ( Latinized hydrargyrum

## Examples

In hydrology, capillary action describes the attraction of water molecules to soil particles. Hydrology (from Greek Yδωρ hudōr, "water" and λόγος logos, "study" is the study of the movement distribution and quality of Water is a common Chemical substance that is essential for the survival of all known forms of Life. Soil, often typeset as SOiL, is a four piece rock band from Chicago Illinois United States founded by Shaun Glass Tom Schofield Tim King and Adam Zadel Capillary action is responsible for moving groundwater from wet areas of the soil to dry areas. Groundwater is Water located beneath the Ground surface in Soil pore spaces and in the Fractures of lithologic formations Differences in soil matric potential (Ψm) drive capillary action in soil. Water potential is the Potential energy of Water relative to pure water (e

Capillary action is also essential for the drainage of constantly produced tear fluid from the eye. Tears are the liquid product of a process of lacrimation to clean and lubricate the Eyes The word lacrimation may also be used in a medical or literary sense Eyes are organs that detect Light, and send signals along the Optic nerve to the visual areas of the brain Two canalicula of tiny diameter are present in the inner corner of the eyelid, also called the lacrymal ducts; their openings can be seen with the naked eye within the lacrymal sacs when the eyelids are everted.

Paper towels absorb liquid through capillary action, allowing a fluid to be transferred from a surface to the towel. A Paper towel is a towel made from Paper. It serves the same general purposes as conventional Towels such as drying hands wiping windows dusting and cleaning The small pores of a sponge act as small capillaries, causing it to absorb a comparatively large amount of fluid. A sponge is a Tool, Implement, Utensil or cleaning aid consisting of porous material

Some old sport and exercise fabrics, such as Coolmax, use capillary action to "wick" sweat away from the skin. A textile is a flexible material comprised of a network of natural or artificial Fibres often referred to as thread or Yarn. Coolmax is the brand name of a series of Technical fabrics designed to wick moisture away from the skin These are often referred to as wicking fabrics, presumably after the capillary properties of a candle wick. Layered clothing is a manner of dressing using multiple garments that are worn on top of each other thumb|Close up photo of a candle wick A candle wick is a wick specifically adapted for use in a Candle.

Chemists utilize capillary action in thin layer chromatography, in which a solvent moves vertically up a plate via capillary action. Thin layer chromatography (TLC is a Chromatography technique used to separate mixtures Dissolved solutes travel with the solvent at various speeds depending on their polarity.

## Formula

With notes on the dimension in SI units, the height h of a liquid column (m) is given by:[1]

$h={2{ \gamma \cos{\theta}}\over{\rho g r}}$

where:

For a water-filled glass tube in air at sea level,

$\scriptstyle \gamma$ is 0. The metre or meter is a unit of Length. It is the basic unit of Length in the Metric system and in the International For the work of fiction see Surface Tension (short story. Surface tension is a property of the surface of a Liquid that causes it to The contact angle is the Angle at which a Liquid / Vapor interface meets the solid surface The density of a material is defined as its Mass per unit Volume: \rho = \frac{m}{V} Different materials usually have different Gravitation is a natural Phenomenon by which objects with Mass attract one another Remote Authentication Dial In User Service ( RADIUS) is a networking protocol that provides centralized access authorization and accounting management for people or computers Temperature and layers The temperature of the Earth's atmosphere varies with altitude the mathematical relationship between temperature and altitude varies among five Mean sea level (MSL is the average (mean height of the Sea, with reference to a suitable reference surface 0728 J/m² at 20 °C
θ is 20° (0. The Celsius Temperature scale was previously known as the centigrade scale. 35 rad)
ρ is 1000 kg/m3
g is 9. The radian is a unit of plane Angle, equal to 180/ π degrees, or about 57 8 m/s²

therefore, the height of the water column is given by:

$h\approx {{1.4 \times 10^{-5}\ \mbox{m}^2}\over r}$.

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 (0. 01 m radius) tube, the water would rise 1. 4 mm, and for a 0. 2 mm wide (0. 0001 m radius) tube, the water would rise 140 mm (about 5. 5 inches). Inches redirects here To see the Les Savy Fav album see Inches.

## Miscellaneous

Albert Einstein's first paper[2] submitted to Annalen der Physik was on capillarity. Albert Einstein ( German: ˈalbɐt ˈaɪ̯nʃtaɪ̯n; English: ˈælbɝt ˈaɪnstaɪn (14 March 1879 – 18 April 1955 was a German -born theoretical Annalen der Physik is one of the best-known and oldest (since 1790 Physics journals worldwide 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. Albert Einstein (1879–1955 was a renowned theoretical physicist of the 20th century who is best known for his theories of Special relativity and General

## References

1. ^ G.K. Batchelor, 'An Introduction To Fluid Dynamics', Cambridge University Press (1967) ISBN 0521663962
2. ^ List of Scientific Publications of Albert Einstein
3. ^ Folgerungen aus den Capillaritätserscheinungen (in German)
Frost flowers is the name commonly given to a condition in which thin layers of Ice are extruded from long-stemmed plants in Autumn or early winter The Hindu milk miracle was a phenomenon considered by many Hindus as a Miracle which occurred on September 21, 1995. In Physics, Washburn's equation describes capillary flow in Porous materials The wick effect is the name given to the partial destruction of a human body by fire when the clothing of the victim soaks up melted human fat and acts like the wick of a The capillary fringe is the subsurface layer in which Groundwater seeps up from a Water table by Capillary action to fill pores A capillary wave is a Wave travelling along the interface between two fluids whose dynamics are dominated by the effects of Surface tension. George Keith Batchelor ( March 8 1920 - March 30 2000) was an Australian Applied mathematician and Fluid dynamicist

## capillary action

### -noun

1. The ability of a narrow interstice to draw a liquid due to surface tension upwards against the force of gravity.
2. The siphoning of liquid into a joint or void between two adjacent surfaces.
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