Talk:Wilhelmy plate

Wilhelmy Plate Diagram[edit]

I believe this diagram is incorrect. The length l is indicated as being the height of the plate that is immersed in liquid, when it should be the the length of the plate itself. I'm no expert on this, so would appreciate it if someone could clarify this. Thanks. Arjiebarjie (talk) 10:34, 6 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

I do confirm that this graph is incorrect. 2l should stand for the perimeter of the plate (l can be the width of plate if thickness can be neglected). The height immersed in liquid is only useful if one wishes to correct for buoyancy effects. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 91.86.149.110 (talk) 19:51, 21 April 2010 (UTC)[reply]

And the force F is in the wrong direction (in the picture). --140.77.129.100 (talk) 19:59, 18 January 2011 (UTC)[reply]

None of it can be claimed to be definitively "wrong" — you can only state that it is incorrect with the usage in the text of this article. Perhaps the drawing was made with F defined as a negative value. Perhaps l really does represent the height of the meniscus (which is what is indicated, in contrast to the claim), and the illustrator intended to use L or P to represent the perimeter. Here's a suggestion: if you don't like the diagram, and it is inconsistent, then make a better one yourself!

—DIV (138.194.12.32 (talk) 00:00, 30 March 2011 (UTC))[reply]