Catenoid/Catenary


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 Code Number :   2A15.21

Disclaimer:

Reprinted by permission of Dick Berg, University of Maryland, for use on this website.

The demonstrations contained and referenced herein are listed for the purposes of cataloging and describing physics demonstrations which should be conducted only under the direction of a trained instructional support professional or physicist. These demonstrations are not presented for the purpose of being conducted by persons unconnected to this Facility and/or persons not consulting with or being supervised by the recognized instructional support professional or physicist and his/her staff. The University is responsible only for those demonstrations carried out using its own equipment using established safety and scheduling policies, and bears no responsibility for those choosing to use this source material for their own purposes. All demonstrations described and contained herein are public domain, and can also be found in reference materials in libraries, bookstores, and electronic sources.

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Condition :   Excellent   
Principle :   Surface Tension
Area of Study :  Heat & Fluids  
Equipment :   2 hoops, one slightly smaller than the other, soap bubble solution.

 

Procedure :   Dip the hoops into the soap bubble solution and position so that one hoop is inside the other.  Pop the film that is in the middle of the smaller hoop.  Slowly draw the two hoops apart and the soap film should show the minimum energy catenoid.
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   References

Eli Honig.  "New Wine Into Old Bottles: A Nuptial Arch."  AJP, Vol. 59, No. 5, (May 1991).

 

M- 837:  "Stand on Egg,"  DICK and RAE Physics Demo Notebook.

 

Tik Liem,  "Fission and Fusion,"  Investigation to Science Inquiry, p. 188.

 

Robert Ehrlich,  "Water Bridge,"  Turning the World Inside Out and 174 Other Simple Physics Demonstrations, p. 111.

 



Mail Questions and Comments to:  Dale Stille