La Consolacion University Philippines

Valenzuela St., Capitol View Park Subdivision, Bulihan, City of Malolos, Bulacan

BASIC EDUCATION DEPARTMENT

SY 2021 - 2022

Name: Capule, Jorgerose A.

Cruz, Jasmine C.
De Guzman, Fair Arwen
De Guzman, Kellie E.
De Lara, Jan Harry C.
De Leon, Bryan Jeffry R.
De Jesus, Karen Allyana P.
Dela Rosa, Rafael S.
Espero, Marc Ernest C. Rating:
Exequiel, Liam Eric S.
Faustino, Aren Carl D.C.
Lopez, Kyla Angela D.G.

Grade & Section: 12-STEM 1 Grp. No. 2

Date: February 15, 2022

Laboratory Activity No. 3

CAPILLARY ACTION

I. Objectives:

1. Observe how capillary action takes place.

II. Materials:

Transparent cups or glass with the same height

water
food color (preferably 1 dark color and 1 light color)
paper towel/ tissue
teaspoon

III. Procedures:
 La Consolacion University Philippines
Valenzuela St., Capitol View Park Subdivision, Bulihan, City of Malolos, Bulacan

BASIC EDUCATION DEPARTMENT

SY 2021 - 2022

1. Fill the two transparent cups with water.

2. Next, add ½ teaspoon of one color of food coloring to one cup and ½ teaspoon of the other color of food coloring
to the other cup. Use your teaspoon to mix the food coloring and the water until it is well mixed. This will help you
observe the capillary action easier.
3. Now orient each of your paper towels/tissue vertically and fold them in half twice, so you have two long, skinny
paper towels/tissue.
4. Place an empty cup in the middle of the two colored cups.
5. Put one end of the paper towel/tissue in the colored water and one end in the empty cup.
6. Repeat this for the other paper towel/tissue and colored water.
7. Observe the cups and tissue. Answer the guide questions.

IV. Experimental Set-up:

V. Guide Questions:

1. Describe what happens to the colored water and empty cup.

In each cup, after the food dye hits the surface of the water, it gets moved around by the flowing
water molecules. Since this experiment was completed in room temperature conditions, we can assume that
 La Consolacion University Philippines
Valenzuela St., Capitol View Park Subdivision, Bulihan, City of Malolos, Bulacan

BASIC EDUCATION DEPARTMENT

SY 2021 - 2022

the water molecules moved around at a normal rate, contrary to what would occur in a colder or hotter
climate. As the food dye molecules get pushed around further as time progresses, it gives the water a colored
appearance, resulting in the multicolored glasses one can observe in the experimental set-up above.

2. Why do you think a paper towel absorbs water upwards?

When water adheres to a vessel's walls, it exerts an upward pull on the liquid at its edges, resulting
in an upward-turning meniscus. The surface tension helps to keep the surface from shifting. The water will
"climb" onto a paper towel if you dip it into a glass of water.

3. What properties of water caused the water on the cup to move upward the paper towel?

When a paper towel is dipped in water, part of the water adheres to it, saturating it. There is a force
between the water molecules and the paper towel molecules, this is referred to as adhesion. Additionally,
water binds to itself, this is referred to as cohesiveness. Both of these forces lead the water to rise against
gravity and move up the paper towel.

4. How is capillary action related to surface tension?

The upward force on the liquid towards the margins caused by water adhering to the vessel's walls
leads the meniscus to turn upward. The surface is held in place by surface tension. Capillary action occurs
when the adhesion to the walls is stronger than the cohesive forces between the liquid molecules.

VI. Conclusion:

Based on the activity, the paper towel absorbs the water upwards, and this phenomenon is called capillary
action. Capillary action is a state where adhesion and cohesion occur. The term "adhesion" refers to the attraction of
forces between two substances. Cohesion, on the other hand, refers to a scenario in which the same substance is
attracted by the same force. The adhesion process happens when the force of attraction occurs between water
molecules and paper molecules, while the cohesion process takes place from the water's adherence to itself.
 La Consolacion University Philippines
Valenzuela St., Capitol View Park Subdivision, Bulihan, City of Malolos, Bulacan

BASIC EDUCATION DEPARTMENT

SY 2021 - 2022

Documentation: (Attach a photo of you and your groupmates while doing the activity)