Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 18, 2026

Impacts of Free-falling Spheres on a Deep Liquid Pool with Altered Fluid and Impactor Surface Conditions
Published on: February 17, 2019
Self-similar breakup of near-inviscid liquids
J R Castrejón-Pita1, A A Castrejón-Pita, E J Hinch
1Department of Engineering, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB3 0FS, United Kingdom.
Abstract:
The final stages of pinchoff and breakup of dripping droplets of near-inviscid Newtonian fluids are studied experimentally for pure water and ethanol. High-speed imaging and image analysis are used to determine the angle and the minimum neck size of the cone-shaped extrema of the ligaments attached to dripping droplets in the final microseconds before pinchoff. The angle is shown to steadily approach the value of 18.0 ± 0.4°, independently of the initial flow conditions or the type of breakup. The filament thins and necks following a τ(2/3) law in terms of the time remaining until pinchoff, regardless of the initial conditions. The observed behavior confirms theoretical predictions.
Related Concept Videos
Excess Pressure Inside a Drop and a Bubble
Nonideal Two-Component Liquid Solutions
Two Components: Liquid–Liquid Systems
Surface Tension of Fluid
Surface tension varies with...
Theories of Dissolution: The Danckwerts' Model and Interfacial Barrier Model
Viscosity of Fluid

