Answer :
The adhesion forces between mercury and glass are far weaker than the cohesive forces between mercury atoms causing the meniscus in the capillary tube to be lower than the meniscus in the beaker.
What is surface tension?
The force operating at a border between two phases is measured as surface tension.
Surface tension at liquid-air interfaces is caused by the higher attraction of liquid molecules to each other than air molecules.
Due to the relatively strong attraction of water. Hence molecules of water have high surface tension.
Because the water wets the glass and seeps up the tube's side when it is contained in a glass tube, the meniscus of the water has a concave form.
The cohesive forces between mercury atoms, on the other hand, are far stronger than the adhesion forces between mercury and glass.
The meniscus in the capillary tube is, therefore, higher than the meniscus in the beaker, but with mercury, the meniscus in the capillary tube is lower than the meniscus in the beaker.
Hence, the meniscus in the capillary tube is lower than the meniscus in the beaker
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Final answer:
The different meniscus levels for water and mercury can be explained by the relative strengths of adhesive and cohesive forces in these substances. Water, with stronger adhesive forces, rises in the capillary tube to form a concave meniscus. Mercury, with stronger cohesive forces, forms a convex meniscus and is lower in the capillary tube.
Explanation:
This observation can be explained by the interplay between adhesive and cohesive forces in liquids, and how these interact with a tube's walls. Different substances have different relative strengths of adhesive and cohesive forces, which determine the shape of the meniscus (the curved surface of a fluid).
In the case of water, adhesive forces between water and glass are stronger than cohesive forces between water molecules. This causes the water to 'cling' to the glass and rise in the capillary tube, forming a concave meniscus.
Conversely, for mercury, the cohesive forces between the mercury molecules are stronger than the adhesive forces between the mercury and glass. As a result, mercury 'pulls' more towards itself than it does towards the glass, forming a convex meniscus and making the mercury level in the capillary tube lower than the beaker.
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