Related Experiment Video
Updated: Oct 23, 2025

Film Control to Study Contributions of Waves to Droplet Impact Dynamics on Thin Flowing Liquid Films
Published on: August 18, 2018
Energy of a Drop Required to Break a Liquid Film
Viktor Grishaev1, Ivan Bakulin1,2, Alidad Amirfazli3
1Center for Design, Manufacturing and Materials, Skolkovo Institute of Science and Technology, Bolshoy Boulevard 30, bld. 1, Moscow 121205, Russian Federation.
Abstract:
An external disturbance can destabilize and break a liquid film on a nonwettable surface. Previous studies focused on evaluating critical film thickness for a spontaneous breakup, but the required energy has been unknown. We experimentally found that the energy of a drop to break a liquid film is an order of magnitude more than that predicted by a free energy balance. Here, we show how to evaluate the energy needed to rupture a liquid film by considering the formation of a crater with a critical size.
Related Concept Videos
Surface Tension of Fluid
Surface tension varies...
Excess Pressure Inside a Drop and a Bubble
Surface Tension and Surface Energy
Consider a beaker filled with liquid. The bulk molecules in the liquid experience equal attractive forces on all sides with the surrounding molecules. However, the surface molecules experience a net attractive force downward due to the bulk molecules. The surface of the liquid behaves like a stretched membrane,...
Surface Tension, Capillary Action, and Viscosity
The various IMFs between identical molecules of a substance are examples of cohesive forces. The molecules within a liquid are surrounded by other molecules and are attracted equally in all directions by the cohesive forces within the liquid. However, the molecules on the surface of a liquid are attracted only by about one-half as many molecules. Because of the unbalanced molecular attractions on the surface molecules, liquids contract to form a shape that minimizes the number...
Phase Transitions: Vaporization and Condensation
Accelerating Fluids
The motion of the liquid within this infinitesimal cylinder is considered to obtain the pressure difference. Three vertical forces act on this liquid:

