Question

The mercury level in a capillary tube placed in a dish of mercury is actually below the surface of the mercury in the dish. Please choose the answer that best explains the phenomenon.a. Mercury flows freely and is incapable of clinging to the walls of the capillary tube. b. Mercury has an incredibly high density for a liquid, making it too heavy to climb the capillary tube, c. The cohesive forces of mercury are much stronger than its adhesive forces. The adhesive forces may be repulsive, causing the mercury level in the tube to be lower than the mercury in the dish. d. Mercury is a polar molecule. It creates incredibly high cohesive forces, which prevent the mercury from climbing the capillary tube.

Answer 1

The cohesive forces of mercury are much stronger than its adhesive forces.

Step-by-step explanation:

Cohesive forces are forces that exist between the particles that compose a substance while adhesive forces refer to forces that exist between the particles of a substance and those of another substance.

The cohesive forces in mercury far outweigh the adhesive forces between the mercury drops and glass. Hence when mercury is put into a capillary tube, its meniscus is convex because cohesive forces tend to draw the liquid mercury into a drop.

Hence, the surface tension in mercury makes the mercury in the capillary tube to fall below the height of the mercury in the dish.