Cavity deformation and bubble entrapment during the impact of droplets on a liquid pool.

Abstract

The impact of droplets on a liquid pool is ubiquitous in nature and important in many industrial applications. A droplet impacting on a liquid pool can result in the pinch-off of a regular bubble or entrap a large bubble under certain impact conditions. In this study, the cavity deformation and the bubble entrapment during the impact of droplets on a liquid pool are studied by combined experimental measurements and numerical simulations. The time evolution of the free surface profile obtained in the numerical simulation is in good agreement with the experimental results. The cavity created by the droplet impact affects the pinch-off of regular bubbles and the entrapment of large bubbles. The regular bubble pinch-off is the direct consequence of the capillary wave propagating downward along the interface of the cavity and merging at the bottom of the cavity. In contrast, the large bubble entrapment is due to the merging of the liquid crowns at the mouth of the cavity. Gravity and environmental pressure play important roles in cavity deformation and bubble entrapment after droplet impact on liquid pools. The maximum depth of the cavity decreases as the gravitational effect becomes stronger. The phenomenon of regular bubble pinch-off may disappear as the gravity decreases. We find that the regular bubble pinch-off can transform into large bubble entrapment when increasing environmental pressure. The size of the large bubble entrapped decreases with increasing the environmental pressure due to the larger difference in the pressure and the vorticity around the liquid crown at increased environmental pressure. Finally, the regime map of bubble entrapment after the droplet impact is obtained.