Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 12, 2026

08:34
Visualization of High Speed Liquid Jet Impaction on a Moving Surface
Published on: April 17, 2015
Summary
Investigating liquid drop splashes reveals complex flow patterns previously undetected. High-speed computer simulations captured the dynamics of these intricate splash events.
Area of Science:
- Fluid dynamics
- Physics of liquids
- Computational modeling
Background:
- Liquid drop impact phenomena are common but complex.
- Previous experimental and theoretical studies have not fully captured low-speed splash dynamics.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the dynamics of low-speed liquid drop splashes.
- To identify and characterize previously undetected complex flow patterns.
Main Methods:
- Utilized high-speed computer simulations.
- Generated configuration plots at various splash stages.
Main Results:
- Observed surprisingly complicated flow patterns during low-speed drop splashes.
- Documented the dynamic evolution of these splash configurations.
Conclusions:
- The study reveals novel complexities in liquid splash dynamics.
- High-speed simulation is effective for exploring previously unobserved fluid phenomena.
Related Concept Videos
Excess Pressure Inside a Drop and a Bubble
The shape of a small drop of liquid can be considered spherical, neglecting the effect of gravity. This drop can further be considered as two equal hemispherical drops put together due to surface tension. The forces acting on the spherical drop are due to the pressure of the liquid inside the drop, the pressure due to air outside the drop, and the force due to the surface tension acting on the two hemispherical drops.
Interference and Diffraction
Interference is a characteristic phenomenon exhibited by waves. When two electromagnetic waves interact with their peaks and troughs coinciding, a resulting wave with enhanced amplitude is produced. This is known as constructive interference. In this case, the two waves interacting are in phase with each other.
Deriving the Speed of Sound in a Liquid
As with waves on a string, the speed of sound or a mechanical wave in a fluid depends on the fluid's elastic modulus and inertia. The two relevant physical quantities are the bulk modulus and the density of the material. Indeed, it turns out that the relationship between speed and the bulk modulus and density in fluids is the same as that between the speed and the Young's modulus and density in solids.
The speed of sound in fluids can be derived by considering a mechanical wave propagating...
The speed of sound in fluids can be derived by considering a mechanical wave propagating...
Surface Tension of Fluid
Surface tension is a fundamental property of fluids, occurring at the boundary between a liquid and a gas or between two immiscible liquids. This phenomenon arises from the cohesive forces between molecules at the fluid's surface, creating an effect similar to a stretched elastic membrane. Inside each fluid, molecules are equally attracted in all directions by neighboring molecules, but surface molecules experience a net inward force, resulting in surface tension.
Surface tension varies with...
Surface tension varies with...
Colloids
Children at play often make suspensions such as mixtures of mud and water, flour and water, or a suspension of solid pigments in water known as tempera paint. These suspensions are heterogeneous mixtures composed of relatively large particles that are visible to the naked eye or can be seen with a magnifying glass. They are cloudy, and the suspended particles settle out after mixing. On the other hand, a solution is a homogeneous mixture in which no settling occurs and in which the dissolved...
Rise of Liquid in a Capillary Tube
When very thin cylindrical tubes, called capillaries, are dipped in a liquid, the liquid rises or falls in the tube compared to the surrounding liquid. This phenomenon is called capillary action. Capillary action occurs due to the combination of two opposing forces: the cohesive forces of the liquid, which cause it to stick to itself and form a rounded shape, and the adhesive forces between the liquid and the walls of the container, which cause the liquid to be attracted to the container walls.

