Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 31, 2026

3D Printing of In Vitro Hydrogel Microcarriers by Alternating Viscous-Inertial Force Jetting
Published on: April 21, 2021
Viscous Effects on Inertial Drop Formation
A Deblais1, M A Herrada2, I Hauner1
1Van der Waals-Zeeman Institute, Institute of Physics, University of Amsterdam, 1098XH Amsterdam, Netherlands.
Abstract:
The breakup of low-viscosity droplets like water is a ubiquitous and rich phenomenon. Theory predicts that in the inviscid limit one observes a finite-time singularity, giving rise to a universal power law, with a prefactor that is universal for a given density and surface tension. This universality has been proposed as a powerful tool to determine the dynamic surface tension at short time scales. We combine high-resolution experiments and simulations to show that this universality is unobservable in practice: in contrast to previous studies, we show that fluid and system parameters do play a role; notably a small amount of viscosity is sufficient to alter the breakup dynamics significantly.
Related Concept Videos
Inertial Frames of Reference
Non-inertial Frames of Reference
Buffer Effectiveness
The buffer capacity is the amount of acid or base that can be added to a given volume...
Excess Pressure Inside a Drop and a Bubble
Formation of Species
Solution Formation
This selective...

