title: Surface tension supported floating of heavy objects: Why elongated bodies float better?
abstract: Floating of bodies heavier than the supporting liquid is discussed. Floating of cylindrical, ellipsoidal bodies and rectangular plates possessing lateral dimensions smaller than the capillary length is treated. It is demonstrated that more elongated bodies of a fixed volume are better supported by capillary forces, due to the increase in the perimeter of the triple line. Thus, floating of metallic needles obtains reasonable explanation.
authors.affiliation: Ariel University, Physics Department, POB 3, Ariel 40700, Israel. Electronic address: edward@ariel.ac.il.
authors.forename: Edward
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Bormashenko
keywords: Capillary length; Elongated bodies; Floating; Heavy objects; Surface tension