Thomas, TM;
Chowdhury, IU;
Dhivyaraja, K;
Mahapatra, PS;
Pattamatta, A;
Tiwari, MK;
(2021)
Droplet dynamics on a wettability patterned surface during spray impact.
Processes
, 9
(3)
10.3390/pr9030555.
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Abstract
Wettability patterning of a surface is a passive method to manipulate the flow and heat transport mechanism in many physical processes and industrial applications. This paper proposes a rational wettability pattern comprised of multiple superhydrophilic wedges on a superhydrophobic background, which can continuously remove the impacted spray droplets from the horizontal surface. We observed that the spray droplets falling on the superhydrophilic wedge region spread and form a thin liquid film, which is passively transported away from the surface. However, most of the droplets falling on the superhydrophobic region move towards the wedge without any flooding. The physics of the passive transport of the liquid film on a wedge is also delved into using numerical modelling. In particular, we elucidate the different modes of droplet transport in the superhydrophobic region and the interaction of multiple droplets. The observed droplet dynamics could have profound implications in spray cooling systems and passive removal of liquid from a horizontal surface. This study’s findings will be beneficial for the optimization of efficient wettability patterned surfaces for spray cooling application.
Type: | Article |
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Title: | Droplet dynamics on a wettability patterned surface during spray impact |
Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
DOI: | 10.3390/pr9030555 |
Publisher version: | https://doi.org/10.3390/pr9030555 |
Language: | English |
Additional information: | This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited |
Keywords: | superhydrophilic; superhydrophobic; wettability patterning; spray impact; passive transport of liquid |
UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Engineering Science UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Engineering Science > Dept of Mechanical Engineering |
URI: | https://discovery-pp.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10124777 |
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