Examples of Surface Tension

We talked about surface tension in class today, one example given was the water strider walking on water. Here are some other interesting ones taken from http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/surten.html :

1. Floating a needle: If carefully placed on the surface, a small needle can be made to float on the surface of water even though it is several times as dense as water. If the surface is agitated to break up the surface tension, then needle will quickly sink.
2. Don't touch the tent!: Common tent materials are somewhat rainproof in that the surface tension of water will bridge the pores in the finely woven material. But if you touch the tent material with your finger, you break the surface tension and the rain will drip through.
3. Clinical test for jaundice: Normal urine has a surface tension of about 66 dynes/cm but if bile is present (a test for jaundice), it drops to about 55. In the Hay test, powdered sulfur is sprinkled on the urine surface. It will float on normal urine, but sink if the S.T. is lowered by the bile.
4. Soaps and detergents help the cleaning of clothes by lowering the surface tension of the water so that it more readily soaks into pores and soiled areas.
5. Surface tension disinfectants: Disinfectants are usually solutions of low surface tension. This allow them to spread out on the cell walls of bacteria and disrupt them. One such disinfectant, S.T.37, has a name which points to its low surface tension compared to the 72 dynes/cm for water.
6. Washing with cold water: The major reason for using hot water for washing is that its surface tension is lower and it is a better wetting agent. But if the detergent lowers the surface tension, the heating may be unneccessary.