Surface tension plays an important role in both natural and technological processes. By adding electrolytes, we can adjust it to specific needs and improve the efficiency of various applications. The effect of temperature on the surface tension of electrolyte solutions is somewhat less studied, although it is equally important for it’s understanding.
As part of this master's thesis, we introduced a new instrument for measuring surface tension, the Tensíío Krüss. This instrument allows measurements of small sample volumes (<1 mL) at different temperatures. Using the Wilhelmy plate method, we measured surface tension between 10 °C and 45 °C for both large and small sample volumes. Measurements were performed on water, as well as aqueous solutions of sodium chloride (NaCl) and sodium acetate (NaOAc) in the concentration range of ~1 < m/mol kg-1 < ~ 5.
We compared our surface tension measurements for water with values from the literature. For larger sample volumes, our results deviated by up to 1%, and for smaller volumes, up to 3%. Due to limited data available in the literature, we were only able to compare part of our results for NaCl and NaOAc solutions.
We also measured the density of the solutions across the same temperature range to verify the concentrations of our prepared samples. During the surface tension measurements, we encountered challenges with temperature control, so the results at the lowest and highest temperatures show slightly higher deviations from the expected values.
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