Properties of Water | Forces affecting adhesion
Forces affecting adhesion
Adhesion, water's tendency to cling to certain substances, creates capillary actionThe tendency of water to rise through a narrow tube by the force of adhesion between the water and the walls of the tube.. In extremely narrow spaces, such as inside water vessels in the stem of a plant, water will actually rise against gravity by the force of adhesion. This capillary action helps plants pull water up from the soil.
Observe the surface of water in a straw: the water can be seen "climbing" the wall of the straw. This bowing of the water's surface is called the meniscusThe curved surface of a column of liquid., and it is caused by the strength of the water's adhesion to the solid around it. In liquids that have much stronger cohesion than adhesion, such as mercury, the...
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