Study on flow characteristics and interfacial interaction of two immiscible liquid phases on vertical wall

Abstract

Water and silicone oil were used as an immiscible mixture, whose flow characteristics and liquid–liquid interfacial interaction on the vertical wall were analyzed by a combination of experiments and numerical simulations. The results indicated that the oil phase of the immiscible mixture flows on the wall as a liquid film, whereas the water phase flows on the oil film as droplets or rivulets. The immiscible mixture flow patterns can be divided into film-drop (FD), film-drop and rivulet (FD-RV), and rivulet (RV) flow according to the different flow behaviors of the water phase. A flow pattern map for the immiscible mixture of oil–water on the vertical wall was determined. In addition, the oil and water two phases influence the spreadability and fluidity of the liquid film, respectively. The water phaseflow can improve the oil film flow velocity, increase the oil–water interface shear stress, and change the oil film thickness.