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Annual Review of Fluid Mechanics

Volume 47, 2015

Floating Versus Sinking

Abstract

Small objects that are more dense than water may still float at the air-water interface because of surface tension. Whether this is possible depends not only on the density and size of the object, but also on its shape and surface properties, whether other objects are nearby, and how gently the object is placed at the interface. This review surveys recent work to quantify when objects can float and when they must sink. Much interest in this area has been driven by studies of the adaptations of water-walking insects to life at interfaces. I therefore discuss these results in the context of this and other applications.

Keyword(s): buoyancy, hydrophobicity, surface tension, water walking
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/content/journals/10.1146/annurev-fluid-010814-014627
2015-01-03
2024-04-25
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/content/journals/10.1146/annurev-fluid-010814-014627
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Floating Versus Sinking
Annual Review of Fluid Mechanics 47, 115 (2015); https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-fluid-010814-014627
/content/journals/10.1146/annurev-fluid-010814-014627
/content/journals/10.1146/annurev-fluid-010814-014627
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