A capillary tube has its lower end immersed in mercury, and the mercury level inside the tube is observed to be 2 cm below the outside level. If this identical tube is immersed in water, to what height will the water rise in the capillary?

Step-by-step solution

The height of a liquid in a capillary tube is given by Jurin's law: h = 2T r g For mercury, the capillary fall is: h_ Hg = 2T_ Hg _ Hg r _ Hg g = -2 cm For water, the capillary rise is: h_w = 2T_w _w r _w g Taking the ratio of the two heights to eliminate the radius r and acceleration due to gravity g : h_w h_ Hg = ( T_w T_ Hg ) ( _ Hg _w ) ( _w _ Hg ) Using the standard physical constants for water and mercury: Surface tension of water, T_w 0.075 N/m Surface tension of mercury, T_ Hg 0.465 N/m Density of water, _w