A general solution of dewetting flow with a moving contact line

Abstract

A theoretical model of a moving contact line was developed for a dewetting flow created by removing a flat solid from a liquid. The model introduces the effect of molecular forces in the near vicinity of the moving contact line. The laminar flow representation is based on a combination of streamline functions defined in a molecular domain where molecular forces are predominant and in a macroscopic domain where viscous forces are predominant. The solution realistically displays the details of the viscous flow near the contact line and compares accurately with existing experimental data. The combined molecular-macroscopic solution resolves the hydrodynamic paradox created by a purely viscous model of this flow [Huh, C. and Scriven, L.E., “Hydrodynamic model of the steady movement of a solid/liquid/fluid contact line,” J. Colloid Interface Sci. 35, 85–101 (1971)] shown to be at odds with experimental data [Fuentes, J. and Cerro, R. L. “Flow patterns and interfacial velocities near a moving contact line,” Experiments in Fluids 38(4), 503–510 (2005)].