Self-similar breakup of near-inviscid liquids

Journal article

The final stages of pinchoff and breakup of dripping droplets of near-inviscid Newtonian fluids are studied experimentally for pure water and ethanol. High-speed imaging and image analysis are used to determine the angle and the minimum neck size of the cone-shaped extrema of the ligaments attached to dripping droplets in the final microseconds before pinchoff. The angle is shown to steadily approach the value of 18.0 ±0.4, independently of the initial flow conditions or the type of breakup. The filament thins and necks following a τ2 /3 law in terms of the time remaining until pinchoff, regardless of the initial conditions. The observed behavior confirms theoretical predictions. © 2012 American Physical Society.

Authors: Castrejón-Pita, JR; Castrejón-Pita, A; Hinch, E; Lister, JR; Hutchings, I

• Journal: Physical Review E - Statistical, Nonlinear, and Soft Matter Physics
• Volume: 86
• Issue: 1
• Publication date: 2012-07-05
• DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevE.86.015301
• EISSN: 1550-2376
• ISSN: 1539-3755
• Language: English