Published online by Cambridge University Press: 28 March 2006
The Laplace equation for the pressure drop across curved liquid-gas interfaces is applied to the solution of the profile of a static liquid meniscus on the outside of a wire of circular cross-section. The resulting differential equation is integrated numerically, an operation complicated by the existence of boundary conditions at two points making a trial-and-error solution necessary. The accuracy of the solution is substantiated by comparison of computed profiles with experiments in which menisci of a blue dye in water are photographed clinging to the outside of brass wires, whose diameters lie within the range of technological interest.
Present address: Department of Chemical Engineering, Cambridge University.
Present address: Department of Mechanical Engineering, Imperial College of Science and Technology, London.
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