Skip to content
Question of 53

Q.Define Surface Tension of a liquid. Find an expression for the excess pressure inside a soap bubble. OR Establish relation between coefficient of linear expansion (α), coefficient of superficial expansion (β) and coefficient of volume expansion (γ) of a solid material.

Haryana BsehBoard of School Education Haryana (Senior Secondary Part-I / Class 11) 2026Subjective· 3mImportance★★★★★
0% · 0/53 Questions
🔒 Locked · start free trial →

You're viewing a preview — the full solution, concept, methods & PYQ mapping are locked.

Start your 14-day free trial to unlock the full solution →

Surface tension is force per unit length along a liquid surface; because a soap bubble has TWO free surfaces, its excess internal pressure is ΔP=4T/r\Delta P=4T/r (twice the single-surface drop result 2T/r2T/r).

Definition: Surface tension TT of a liquid is the tangential force acting per unit length on either side of an imaginary line drawn on the free surface of the liquid, tending to minimize the surface area. Its SI unit is N/m\text{N/m}, and it arises because surface molecules experience a net inward pull from the molecules below, making the surface behave like a stretched elastic membrane.

Excess pressure inside a soap bubble: A soap bubble is a thin liquid film with TWO free surfaces (inner and outer), each contributing surface tension. Let the bubble have radius rr.

Imagine the radius increases by a small amount drdr.

Increase in surface energy: the total surface area of both surfaces together is 2×4πr2=8πr22\times 4\pi r^2 = 8\pi r^2. Its increase is:

dA=2×(8πr dr)=16πr drdA = 2\times(8\pi r\,dr) = 16\pi r\,dr

so the work needed to create this new surface (against surface tension) is:

dWsurface=T dA=16πTr drdW_{\text{surface}} = T\,dA = 16\pi T r\,dr

…

Unlock everything free for 14 days

  • Full step-by-step solutions
  • Concept-first explanations
  • Methods, shortcuts & mistakes
  • PYQ mapping + timed mock tests

Full access for 14 days. No credit card required.