Surface tension is a measurement of the cohesive energy present at an interface. The molecules of a liquid attract each other. The interactions of a molecule in the bulk of a liquid are balanced by an equal attractive force in all directions. Molecules on the surface of a liquid experience an imbalance and cohere more strongly to those directly associated with them on the surface. This forms a surface 'film' that makes it more difficult to move an object through the surface than move it when it is completely immersed. The same situation also applies at the interface of the two liquids that do not mix together (for example oil and water). In this case the term interfacial tension is used. There are several different units for surface and interfacial tension and typically surface tension is measured in Dynes/cm (mN/m).
WESHINE offers a range of Surface Tensiometers(VS-9804 series) that are widely used in education, research, process control and quality control for measuring Surface Tension.