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Simulation of binary droplet collisions from bouncing to shattering regime.
Mohammad Fahim Faisal Patwary1, Doruk Isik1, Song-Charng Kong1
1Texas Tech University, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Lubbock, Texas 79409, USA.
Physical Review. E
|November 18, 2025
Summary
This study presents a unified Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics (SPH) simulation to model droplet collision outcomes across various Weber numbers (We). The approach accurately captures bouncing, coalescence, separation, and shattering regimes for different fluids.
Area of Science:
- Fluid Dynamics
- Multiphase Flow
- Computational Physics
Background:
- Binary droplet collisions have diverse outcomes like bouncing, coalescence, and shattering, highly dependent on Weber number (We).
- Existing numerical models often focus on specific regimes and lack a unified approach across the impact parameter space.
- Understanding these collision dynamics is crucial for applications in combustion, sprays, and microfluidics.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop an integrated simulation method capable of capturing all major binary droplet collision regimes.
- To investigate droplet collision outcomes across a wide Weber number range (We=10-1000) using a single numerical framework.
- To provide a comprehensive regime map for droplet collision outcomes.
Main Methods:
- Utilized Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics (SPH), a mesh-free method, for simulating droplet collisions.
- Incorporated an interfacial curvature-based approach to model the bouncing regime and hydrocarbon behavior.
- Validated simulations against experimental data for various fluids (water, tetradecane, heptane) and collision types (head-on, off-center).
Main Results:
- The SPH method successfully reproduced bouncing, coalescence, stretching separation, and shattering regimes.
- Accurate prediction of deformation morphologies and satellite droplet formation in stretching separation.
- Shattering regime validated against experimental data for head-on collisions (We=200-1500), extended to off-center cases.
- A comprehensive regime map illustrating collision outcomes from We=0 to 1000 was generated.
Conclusions:
- The presented integrated SPH approach offers a unified framework for simulating diverse binary droplet collision outcomes.
- The model accurately captures complex phenomena across a wide range of Weber numbers and impact parameters.
- This work provides a valuable tool for predicting and understanding droplet collision dynamics in various scientific and engineering fields.
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