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As you can see in this diagram the surface of the liquid is concave, why is the part of the liquid surface adjacent to the container has higher height than the rest of the surface, is it because it's not surrounded from all directions by molecules of the liquid so the cohesive force is smaller than the liquid in the middle which is surrounded with liquid molecules from multiple directions?

Qmechanic
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user2390934
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1 Answers1

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The curvature of the surface happens due to the adhesional forces between glas and water. Those are higher than the cohesional forces inside the water. An indicator for this is the wettability. The phenomenon depends on the texture of the surface and the surface tension of the liquid.

Carina
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