In physical chemistry, supersaturation occurs with a solution when the concentration of a solute exceeds the concentration specified by the value of solubility at equilibrium. Most commonly the term is applied to a solution of a solid in a liquid, but it can also be applied to liquids and gases dissolved in a liquid. A supersaturated solution is in a metastable state; it may return to equilibrium by separation of the excess of solute from the solution, by dilution of the solution by adding solvent, or by increasing the solubility of the solute in the solvent.
Crystallized sugar (rock candy) is made by adding a seed crystal to a supersaturated solution of table sugar and water. The multiple crystals on the right were grown from a sugar cube, while the left was grown from a single seed taken from the right. A red dye was added to the solution for the left crystal, but was insoluble with the solid sugar, and only traces remain while the rest precipitated out.
Surface tension is the tendency of liquid surfaces at rest to shrink into the minimum surface area possible. Surface tension is what allows objects with a higher density than water such as razor blades and insects to float on a water surface without becoming even partly submerged.
Rain water flux from a canopy. Among the forces that govern drop formation: surface tension, cohesion, Van der Waals force, Plateau–Rayleigh instability.