Wonder of Surface Tension

When I was asked to talk about the uses of Surface tension, my mind collects the usual applications that we are seeing in our everyday life. That is by reducing the surface tension of water using soaps, we can easily wash our dresses. And I thought about capillary rise that is due to surface tension. But after some time, I thought about it so deep and I got a beautiful point about surface tension.

First of all Surface tension is the force on the surface of the molecules that tends to minimize the surface. It is the force per unit length on the surface.

I have seen many of them will treat adhesive, cohesive forces completely different from Surface tension. But it is not. We should not confuse with all these forces like Vander Waals force and London force. All these are simply the basic intermolecular forces.

In that way Surface tension is simply the cohesive force between the liquid molecules. It is a type of intermolecular forces.

To understand the use any of thing, first we should eliminate from the Nature and give a little thought to the Nature without that force.

I ended with this beautiful conclusion though it is a fundamental one.

Don’t think that the conclusion is capillary rise, because without capillary rise the plants can’t make food. Without capillary rise it will never make starch by photosynthesis. Though pressure difference in the water tubes of branches in the plants is a reason for the water flow, capillary rise plays the major role. But I am not going to talk about Capillary rise. I want to deeply analyze the fundamental importance of surface tension.

Do you think without Surface tension you can see water?

In more simple way, without Surface tension, do you think there will be a meaning for water?

The water will not be there if there is no surface tension. The water will not have any surface at all. It will become similar to gas.

Most simple example is sprayer. Using sprayers, the water drops are sprayed. It is the same case that will happen to water if there is no surface tension. The water itself will start to spray by itself. The water will not get a shape.

       

Without Surface tension the liquids will get transformed into gases.

       

You can ask, “okay.. What will happen if there is no surface tension that is if it is sprayed”?

The answer is “Humans will not be happened if there is no surface tension”.

Think how you will look, if your blood starts to lose it surface tension. The shape of the body will start to spread. Moreover you will become dead without surface tension.

The Plants, Animals, Humans and no living thing will be formed without surface tension.

Thank God for Surface tension.

So, I just started to wonder about Surface tension when I realized its fundamental importance in the creation of living things.