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Droplet splashing on curved substrates
Thomas C Sykes1, Ben D Fudge1, Miguel A Quetzeri-Santiago2
1Department of Engineering Science, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3PJ, United Kingdom.
Journal of Colloid and Interface Science
|February 8, 2022
Summary
Droplet splashing on curved surfaces depends on curvature, not just impact speed. Smaller spheres make splashing harder, revealing a new parameter for predicting droplet splash thresholds.
Area of Science:
- Fluid Dynamics
- Surface Science
- Physics of Soft Matter
Background:
- Droplet impact on solid surfaces can lead to splashing above a critical velocity.
- The influence of substrate geometry on droplet splashing dynamics is not fully understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how substrate curvature affects the splashing threshold of impacting droplets.
- To establish a parameterization for splashing thresholds on curved surfaces.
Main Methods:
- High-speed imaging experiments were conducted.
- Millimetric droplets were impacted onto convex and concave surfaces.
- Splashing thresholds and dynamics were analyzed across various geometries and impact conditions.
Main Results:
- Splashing tendency is inversely proportional to the substrate's radius of curvature.
- Splashing is more difficult on smaller spheres (higher curvature).
- A modified splashing ratio was developed to parameterize the axisymmetric splashing threshold for all curved geometries.
Conclusions:
- Substrate curvature significantly alters droplet splashing thresholds.
- The findings provide a new framework for predicting droplet splash behavior on curved surfaces.
- Understanding these dynamics is crucial for applications involving liquid-solid interactions.
