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What is the difference between capillarity and osmosis?

Question #142156. Asked by chabenao1.
Last updated Jan 27 2016.
Originally posted Jan 26 2016 10:12 AM.

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satguru star
Answer has 6 votes
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satguru star
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Answer has 6 votes.

Currently voted the best answer.
The basic difference is capillary action draws liquid through a passage based on pressure differences, therefore able to work against gravity as will always move from the source of liquid regardless of the direction.

Osmosis is travelling through a membrane from an area of high concentration of a dissolved compound to a lower one. Therefore one involves passage of any liquid by capillary action, while the other is about the passage of what the liquid is carrying as a solvent.

link https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osmosis

What they have in common is they are both spontaneous movements but one is the liquid itself while the other is within the liquid.

Jan 26 2016, 8:44 PM
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looney_tunes star
Answer has 6 votes
looney_tunes star
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3332 replies avatar

Answer has 6 votes.
Osmosis is the movement of molecules of the liquid in which a substance is dissolved (the solvent) from one place to another through a semi-permeable membrane. This movement tends to go from a region with a low concentration of the solute to one where there is a higher concentration, hence equalising the concentrations. The membrane is called semi-permeable because it allows the solvent molecules to pass through, but not the dissolved particles.

link https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osmosis

Capillary action is movement within a space, usually a narrow tube, caused by interaction between the molecules of the liquid and those of the surrounding material. The interaction of the surface tension produced by forces within the liquid and adhesive forces between the liquid and the surrounding material pull the liquid along the passage. It is most commonly talked about where this movement is against gravity, although it operates under other situations, too.

link https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capillary_action

So osmosis is movement of a liquid from one place to another physically separate one; capillary action moves a liquid along with anything that is dissolved in it from one lace to another area to which it is directly joined.

Jan 27 2016, 1:34 PM
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