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Liquid is one of the four primary states of matter, with the others being solid, gas and plasma. A liquid is a fluid. Unlike a solid, the molecules in a liquid have a much greater freedom to move. The forces that bind the molecules together in a solid are only temporary in a liquid, allowing a liquid to flow while a solid remains rigid.
This charge polarization within the molecule allows it to align with adjacent molecules through strong intermolecular hydrogen bonding, rendering the bulk liquid cohesive. Van der Waals gases such as methane, however, have weak cohesion due only to van der Waals forces that operate by induced polarity in non-polar molecules.
Matter in the liquid state maintains a fixed volume (assuming no change in temperature or air pressure), but has a variable shape that adapts to fit its container. Its particles are still close together but move freely. Matter in the gaseous state has both variable volume and shape, adapting both to fit its container.
Water molecules stay close to each other , due to the collective action of hydrogen bonds between water molecules. These hydrogen bonds are constantly breaking, with new bonds being formed with different water molecules; but at any given time in a sample of liquid water, a large portion of the molecules are held together by such bonds. [61]
The attractive force draws molecules closer together and gives a real gas a tendency to occupy a smaller volume than an ideal gas. Which interaction is more important depends on temperature and pressure (see compressibility factor). In a gas, the distances between molecules are generally large, so intermolecular forces have only a small effect.
The study of liquid and glass structure aims to gain insight into their behavior and physical properties, so that they can be understood, predicted and tailored for specific applications. Since the structure and resulting behavior of liquids and glasses is a complex many body problem , historically it has been too computationally intensive to ...
The engineering principle behind chemical adhesion in this sense is fairly straightforward: if surface molecules can bond, then the surfaces will be bonded together by a network of these bonds. It bears mentioning that these attractive ionic and covalent forces are effective over only very small distances – less than a nanometer .
At liquid–air interfaces, surface tension results from the greater attraction of liquid molecules to each other (due to cohesion) than to the molecules in the air (due to adhesion). [1] There are two primary mechanisms in play. One is an inward force on the surface molecules causing the liquid to contract.