A liquid that wets glass completely (contact angle zero) rises to height in a narrow…
PHYSICS · Multi-part · Fermi University Physics · Scientific Practice & Experimental Methods · Quantities, units and the practice of measurement · Quantities, units and the practice of measurement
Measurement and Method, Ch What dimensions decide before you measure anything
Problem
A liquid that wets glass completely (contact angle zero) rises to height h in a narrow vertical glass tube of radius r. The relevant quantities are h, r, the liquid density ρ, its surface tension γ (unit Nm−1=kgs−2), and g.
((a)) How many independent dimensionless groups can be formed from these five quantities?
((b)) An experimenter measures h for ten different tube radii and for four different wetting liquids. When the data are plotted using the correct dimensionless group(s), onto how many curves do all the measurements collapse?