Water vs Mercury
Classical Mechanics
Level
3
Consider two hollow spheres, one containing water and the other containing mercury. Each liquid fills about one-tenth of the volume of the sphere. In zero gravity environment...
water and mercury both form a layer on the glass
mercury forms a layer on the glass while water floats
water forms a layer on the glass while mercury floats
water and mercury float freely inside the spheres
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1 solution
Mercury does not stick to glass while water does. This is because adhesive force between mercury and glass is less than the cohesive force between its molecules. The opposite stands true for water.