I’ve got a tray labelled “barometer” that includes lots of tubing and thistle tubes. Does anyone have instructions to make this work? Or is it only going to be possible with mercury?
Build your own barometer
- Thread starter Technician Q
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Nick Mitchener
COMMITTEE
Well you could do it with water, but you will need a lot more tube!
How much? Do you have instructions?
They probably used mercury, the number of times I've been asked for a Torricelli barometer (a tube and a bowl of mercury).
Tech says NO.
Nick Mitchener
COMMITTEE
10.4 metre column of water. Though it is inaccurate because of the high vapour pressure. There is a water one at a uni somewhere I think.
We’re certainly not going that route!They probably used mercury, the number of times I've been asked for a Torricelli barometer (a tube and a bowl of mercury).
Tech says NO.
Ah yes. Not sure they’ll let me put that in the stairwell
They can have this. Forgot to colour the water.
Saw one at York Uni. Many years ago (1980s)
We tried one with clear PVC tube, outside up the fire escape - Had the whole reel of tubing immersed in water, clammped and bunged one end then tied a string to it and hoisted it up, along with with a tape measure, to the 2nd floor balcony of the fire-escape (with someone at the bottom ensuring the end kept below water.
It sort of worked, but as you say, you could see bubbles forming near the surface of the water.
Don’t recall seeing one when I was there. Unless that was the real purpose of the Chemistry Water Tower (RIP)....
Nick Mitchener
COMMITTEE
I think it is around 34 feet for water, 39 inches for mercury.
I may be mistaken, it was an extremely long glass pipe full of water in the stairwell, 3 or 4 floors high. Sorry I can't remember the name of the building as I was only there for a week on Open University summer school (those were the days). Hung in the other stairwell were 2 extremely long pendulums with carbon painted polystyrene bobs - for electrostatics I would guess.
I imagine the department went through several (well maybe one) refurbishments before I got to York (late nineties). I meant it more in the sense of "I wish I'd seen it" than "you're mistaken".
No problem, I just wish I had a tall enough building to build one in!