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Capillarity in Fluid

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Capillarity describes the movement of liquid in small spaces without external forces acting on it. The capillarity is driven by surface tension and adhesive interactions between the liquid and surrounding solid surfaces. This effect is often seen in narrow tubes, porous materials, and fine particles.
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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jan 14, 2026

Fabrication and Visualization of Capillary Bridges in Slit Pore Geometry

Fabrication and Visualization of Capillary Bridges in Slit Pore Geometry

Published on: January 9, 2014

Wettability-gradient-driven capillary filling dynamics in architected tapered microchannels.

Soumadip Das¹, Vinod B Vanarse¹, Omkar S Deshmukh¹

¹Department of Chemical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Guwahati 781039, Assam, India. vanarse@iitg.ac.in.

|October 24, 2025

Summary

This study explores capillary-driven flow in microchannels, finding that geometric tapering and wettability gradients precisely control fluid transport. These methods enable programmable fluid manipulation for advanced microfluidic systems.

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Last Updated: Jan 14, 2026

Fabrication and Visualization of Capillary Bridges in Slit Pore Geometry

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Published on: January 9, 2014

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Micropatterning and Assembly of 3D Microvessels

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Published on: September 9, 2016

Area of Science:

Soft Matter Physics
Fluid Dynamics
Microfluidics

Background:

Capillary-driven transport is fundamental in biological systems (e.g., plant xylem) and microfluidic devices.
Controlling autonomous fluid flow in microchannels is crucial for various applications.

Purpose of the Study:

To systematically investigate capillary filling dynamics in microchannels with geometric tapering and spatially variable wettability.
To quantify the impact of different contact-angle profiles on fluid flow characteristics.

Main Methods:

High-resolution computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations were employed.
Navier-Stokes equations and the level-set method were used to model fluid interfaces.
Analysis focused on Laplace pressure, interface morphology, and flow velocity.

Main Results:

Geometric tapering amplifies capillary pressure, sustaining or accelerating interface advancement.
Tailored wettability gradients allow for precise control over flow, including on-demand arrest.
Simulations confirmed the Lucas-Washburn regime in uniform channels, showing viscous slowdown.

Conclusions:

Coupling geometric and interfacial patterning offers precise fluid manipulation capabilities.
Design principles for advanced passive microfluidic systems and programmable soft-matter transport were established.
This research provides a framework for designing sophisticated microfluidic devices.