Can Suction Lift a 20 Meter Water Column Without Exceeding Its Tensile Strength?

Join the discussion
Registration is free. Start your own thread to ask a follow-up.
1 reply · 3K views
Namrata
Messages
1
Reaction score
0

Homework Statement



What suction (or negative pressure) is required to support a column of liquid 20 m high? Does this exceed the tensile strength of water?

Homework Equations



Bulk Modulus = (Change in Pressure/ (Change in Volume/Volume))
Pressure = Force / Area

The Attempt at a Solution



Tensile strength of water = 20 MPa

Pressure = Force / Area

Assume column has a diameter of 1 unit.
The surface area of this column is thus:

Circumference x Height of column + Area of top of column

= 62.83 + 0.79
=63.62 units2


 
Physics news on Phys.org
Do you know why water rises in a straw when you suck on it?
If you do, then assuming that you have an extremely long straw, can you calculate how high the water would rise if you had perfect vacuum (zero pressure) inside the straw?