Lattice Boltzmann simulation of drop formation in T-junction microchannel

Abstract

In this study, we numerically studied the drop formation in the ordinary and modified T-junction microchannels. The lattice Boltzmann method based on the pesudo-potential method is utilized for the multiphase flow simulation. The results are verified by several well-known benchmarks, such as the Laplace test, coalescence of two static drops, contact angle, and the drop formation in the T-junction microchannels. Present results depict a good agreement with the previous published numerical and experimental studies. A detailed investigation of the effect of various parameters including Capillary number, the flow rate ratio, the width ratio, and the contact angle on the length of drop, as well for the distance between drops in the ordinary and the modified T-junction microchannels are performed and the results are presented in details. The results reveal that by simple modifications on the ordinary T-junction, the smaller drops and the lower distance between them can be generated in the modified T-junction microchannels in the comparison of the ordinary T-junction geometry under the same conditions. The results reveal that the size of drops and the distance between them are very sensitive to the geometry of the micro-channel. This study shows that the Pseudo-Potential lattice Boltzmann method is an effective way to simulate the generation of drops in microchannels.