Question

With the addition of impurities, surface tension of a liquid

• A. Increases
• B. Decreases
• C. Remains constant
• D. May increase or decrease depending on impurities

Answer 1

Answer: (D)

May increase or decrease depending on impurities

The presence of impurities either on the surface or dissolved in it, affect surface tension of the liquid. Highly soluble substances increase the surface tension of water, whereas sparingly soluble substances reduce the surface tension of water. The surface tension of a liquid decreases with increase in temperature. The surface tension of a liquid becomes zero at its boiling point and vanishes at critical temperature.