Periodic jetting and monodisperse jet drops from oblique gas injection

When air is blown in a straw or tube near an air-liquid interface, typically one of two behaviors is observed: a dimple in the liquid's surface, or a frenzy of sputtering bubbles, waves, and spray. Here we report and characterize an intermediate regime that can develop when a confined air jet enters the interface at an angle. This regime is oscillatory with a distinct characteristic frequency and can develop periodic angled jets that can break up into monodisperse aerosols. The underlying mechanisms responsible for this highly periodic regime are not well understood. Here we flow a continuous stream of gas through a tube near a liquid surface, observing both optically and acoustically the deformation of the liquid-air interface as various parameters are systematically adjusted. We show that the Kelvin-Helmholtz instability is responsible for the inception of waves within a cavity formed by the gas. Inertia, gravity, and capillary forces both shape the cavity and govern the frequency and amplitude of these gas-induced cavity waves. The flapping cavity focuses the waves into a series of periodic jets that can break up into droplets following the Rayleigh-Plateau instability. We present scaling arguments to rationalize the fundamental frequencies driving this system, as well as the conditions that bound the periodic regime. These frequencies and conditions compare well with our experimental results.