A steady-state non-equilibrium molecular dynamics approach for the study of evaporation processes

Two non-equilibrium methods (called bubble method and splitting method, respectively) have been developed and tested to study the steady state evaporation of a droplet surrounded by its vapor, where the evaporation continuously occurs at the vapor-liquid interface while the droplet size remains constant. In the bubble method, gas molecules are continuously reinserted into a free volume (represented by a bubble) located at the centre of mass of the droplet to keep the droplet size constant. In the splitting method, a molecule close to the centre of mass of the droplet is split into two: In this way, the droplet size is also maintained during the evaporation. By additional local thermostats confined to the area of insertion, the effect of frequent insertions on properties such as density and temperature can be limited to the immediate insertion area. Perturbations are not observed in other parts of the droplet. In the end, both the bubble method and the splitting method achieve steady-state droplet evaporation. Although these methods have been developed using an isolated droplet, we anticipate that they will find a wide range of applications in the study of the evaporation of isolated films and droplets or thin films on heated substrates or under confinement. They can in principle also be used to study the steady-state of other physical processes, such as the diffusion or permeation of gas molecules or ions in a pressure gradient or a concentration gradient.