capillary attraction


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capillary attraction

n.
The force that results from greater adhesion of a liquid to a solid surface than internal cohesion of the liquid itself and that causes the liquid to be raised against a vertical surface, as water is in a clean glass tube. It is the force that allows a porous material to soak up a liquid.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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'Muslim scholars calculated the angle of the ecliptic; measured the size of the Earth; calculated the precession of the equinoxes; explained, in the field of optics and physics, such phenomena as refraction of light, gravity, capillary attraction, and twilight; and developed observatories for the empirical study of heavenly bodies.
Islamic brotherhood: Path to global tranquility
Standing water would certainly dry in a short time during dry periods, but it could leave darker areas from constant moisture coming up through the concrete by capillary attraction and evaporation.
Ceramic tile is not best choice
The book also cites bad design, such as a slated roof slope that is laid to too shallow a slope so that water soaks between the slates and up the slope by what''s called capillary attraction. Another example is a wall that is extended above roof level without a water-proof capping on top or a damp proof course at roof level so the damp drains down into the building below.
Beware of quick damp diagnosis; House doctor Peter Fall explains why dampness may not be a simple matter to resolve

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