CH- 12 :

SURFACE TENSION
Lect-01
 Today’s Goal

Introduction
Surface Energy
Excess Pressure in a Liquid Drop
Surface Tension :
1) Surface Tension is the property of Liquid
surface.

2) The Property of Liquid Surface due to which

it tries to attain minimum Surface Area is
called Surface Tension.

3) A Small drop of Liquid is spherical in shape ,

because for given Volume , sphere has
minimum Surface Area.
Q )The rain drops are in spherical shape due to

A .Viscosity

B. Surface tension

C. Thrust on drop

D. Both A and B
Surface Tension is numerically equal to the force
acting per unit length of a hypothetical line drawn
on a liquid surface normal to it in either direction.
A beaker of radius 15 cm is filled with liquid of
surface tension 0.075 N/m. Force across an
imaginary diameter on the surface of liquid is

(A) 0.075 N
(B) 1.5 × 10–2 N
(C) 0.225 N
(D) 2.25 × 10–2 N
Liquid Film
A thin liquid film formed between a U-shaped wire and a light
slider supports a weight of 1.5 × 10–2N(see figure). The length
of the slider is 30cm and its weight negligible. The surface
tension of the liquid film is

a) 0.1N/m
b) 0.05N/m
c) 0.025N/m
d) 0.0125N/m
Floating of Needle on Water surface
Lifting of Needle above water surface
Some important points
1) Soap decreases the surface tension of water , which
helps soap water to reach in pores of clothes and take
out dirt.

2)Surface Tension of a liquid decreases with rise in

Temperature and becomes ZERO at critical temperature,
that is why hot soup tastes better than cold one
3) Surface Tension is a scalar quality. (However direction
of the force on the line on which it is calculated
can be known)

4) It depends only on nature of liquid and its

intermolecular forces.

5) It depends on impurities added to a liquid

Surface Energy
1) Molecules on a liquid surface have some extra energy in
comparison to molecules in the interior. A liquid, thus, tends to
have the least surface to have minimum energy and most
stability
Surface Energy and Surface Tension
(Energy of new drop/ Energy of Old Drop)
Excess Pressure in a Liquid Drop