Materials List: Exploring Capillary Action

For the introductory teacher demonstration:

  • 2 large beakers
  • reptile substrate or bedding from a pet store, enough for the two beakers (this material comes in desiccated [dried out] bricks of plant matter; the night before, add water to one beaker to thoroughly wet the material overnight)
  • water
  • cup, to hold and pour water into the beakers during the demo

Each student needs:

For Part I: The Meniscus, each group needs:

  • graduated cylinder

For Part II: Capillary Tubes, each group needs:

  • ring stand with support ring attached
  • 3 capillary tubes of different diameters
  • large Petri dish
  • twist-ties
  • water with dark food coloring
  • ruler

For Part III: Using Capillary Action, each group needs:

  • assortment of various types of paper, cloth and string
  • paper towels
  • scissors
  • tape
  • 2 buckets
  • ruler
  • scale
https://www.teachengineering.org/activities/view/duk_surfacetensionunit_act2a