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Capillary action of water (polar) compared to mercury (non-polar), in each case with respect to a polar surface such as glass (≡Si–OH). Capillary action (sometimes called capillarity, capillary motion, capillary rise, capillary effect, or wicking) is the process of a liquid flowing in a narrow space without the assistance of external forces like gravity.
The equation is derived for capillary flow in a cylindrical tube in the absence of a gravitational field, but is sufficiently accurate in many cases when the capillary force is still significantly greater than the gravitational force. In his paper from 1921 Washburn applies Poiseuille's Law for fluid motion in a circular tube.
For reference, capillary pressures between air and brine (which is a significant system in the petrochemical industry) have been shown to range between 0.67 and 9.5 MPa. [11] There are various ways to predict, measure, or calculate capillary pressure relationships in the oil and gas industry. These include the following: [7]
In physics, the Young–Laplace equation (/ l ə ˈ p l ɑː s /) is an algebraic equation that describes the capillary pressure difference sustained across the interface between two static fluids, such as water and air, due to the phenomenon of surface tension or wall tension, although use of the latter is only applicable if assuming that the wall is very thin.
The capillary length or capillary constant is a length scaling factor that relates gravity and surface tension. It is a fundamental physical property that governs the behavior of menisci, and is found when body forces (gravity) and surface forces ( Laplace pressure ) are in equilibrium.
Capillary action is one of the most common fluid mechanical effects explored in the field of microfluidics. Jurin's law is named after James Jurin , who discovered it between 1718 and 1719. [ 2 ] His quantitative law suggests that the maximum height of liquid in a capillary tube is inversely proportional to the tube's diameter.
Flow through the pores in an oil reservoir has capillary number values in the order of 10 −6, whereas flow of oil through an oil well drill pipe has a capillary number in the order of unity. [ 4 ] The capillary number plays a role in the dynamics of capillary flow ; in particular, it governs the dynamic contact angle of a flowing droplet at ...
Water potential is the potential energy of water per unit volume relative to pure water in reference conditions. Water potential quantifies the tendency of water to move from one area to another due to osmosis, gravity, mechanical pressure and matrix effects such as capillary action (which is caused by surface tension).