Liquid Bridge Research Articles

Electrically activated ferroelectric nematic microrobots

Ferroelectric nematic liquid crystals are fluids exhibiting spontaneous electric polarization, which is coupled to their long range orientational order. Due to their inherent property of making bound and surface charges, the free surface of ferroelectric nematics becomes unstable in electric fields. Here we show that ferroelectric liquid bridges between two electrode plates undergo distinct interfacial instabilities. In a specific range of frequency and voltage, the ferroelectric fluid bridges move as active interacting particles resembling living organisms like swarming insects, microbes or microrobots. The motion is accompanied by sound emission, as a consequence of piezoelectricity and electrostriction. Statistical analysis of the active particles reveals that the movement can be controlled by the applied voltage, which implies the possible application of the system in new types of microfluidic devices.

Dynamics of liquid bridges between patterned surfaces

We have simulated the motion of a single vertical, two-dimensional liquid bridge spanning the gap between two flat, horizontal solid substrates consisting of alternating hydrophilic and hydrophobic stripes, using a multicomponent pseudopotential lattice Boltzmann method. This extends our earlier work where the substrates were uniformly hydrophilic or hydrophobic. In steady-state conditions, we calculate the following, as functions of pattern wavelength: (i) the velocity fields of moving bridges, in particular their (time-averaged) terminal velocities; (ii) the deformation of moving bridges, as measured by the deviation of bridge contact angles from their equilibrium values; (iii) the minimum applied force that breaks a moving bridge. In addition, we found that a bridge moving between patterned substrates cannot be mapped onto a bridge moving between uniform substrates endowed with some effective contact angle, even in the limit of very small pattern wavelength compared to bridge width.

Enhancement and Predictable Guidance of Coalescence-Induced Droplet Jumping on V-Shaped Superhydrophobic Surfaces with a Ridge.

Coalescence-induced droplet jumping has attracted significant attention in recent years. However, achieving a high jumping velocity while predictably regulating the jumping direction of the merged droplets by simple superhydrophobic structures remains a challenge. In this work, a novel V-shaped superhydrophobic surface with a ridge is conceived for enhanced and predictably guided coalescence-induced droplet jumping. By conducting experiments and lattice Boltzmann simulations, it is found that the presence of a ridge in the V-shaped superhydrophobic surface can modify the fluid dynamics during the droplet coalescence process, resulting in a much higher droplet jumping velocity than that achieved by the V-shaped superhydrophobic surface without a ridge. The enhancement of the droplet jumping velocity is mainly attributed to the combined effect of the earlier and more sufficient impingement between the liquid bridge and the ridge, as well as the accelerated droplet contraction by redirecting the internal liquid flow toward the jumping direction. A high normalized jumping velocity of is achieved by the newly designed surface, with a 930% increase in the energy conversion efficiency in comparison with that on a flat surface. Moreover, adjusting the opening direction of the V-groove at different groove angles is found to be an effective method to regulate the droplet jumping direction and expand the range of the jumping angle. Particularly, the droplet jumping angle can be well predicted based on the rotational angle (ω) and the groove angle (α), i.e., θj,p ≈ 90° - 0.5α - ω.

Heat and mass transfer behavior in CMT plus pulse arc manufacturing

The metal transfer mode, temperature distribution, flow behavior, and microstructure characteristic in the process of cold metal transfer plus pulse (CMT+P) arc manufacturing were investigated by the in-situ observation and numerical simulation. A novel coupling model for droplet-pool interaction under the CMT+P arc was established, along with a new heat source model that considered Marangoni forces on droplets. These innovations provided significant insights into the heat and mass transfer mechanisms in the CMT+P hybrid arc manufacturing process. The results show that the droplets generated by the CMT+P hybrid arc exhibited a mixed transfer mode: short-circuit transfer in the CMT period and projected transfer of one droplet per pulse during the pulse period. The short-circuit transfer was more stable than the projected transfer, attributed to the smooth transfer of droplets to the molten pool through the liquid metal bridge, dominated by surface tension and Marangoni forces. The main energy of the molten pool was provided by droplets, which had a dominant ability to melt the substrate. However, the liquid metal bridge in the CMT period slowed down the heat transfer to the molten pool and had significant oscillating and stirring effects. During the pulse period, the droplet was accelerated and projected transfer by gravity and electromagnetic force. After solidification, the microstructure exhibited an alternating distribution of columnar and equiaxed grains from the bottom-up in the monolayer deposited layer, with a deflected fusion interface towards the scanning direction. At the top of the deposited layer, coarse columnar grains were distributed obliquely or laterally, inhibiting the growth of equiaxed grains and forming a distinct boundary with the equiaxed grains below.

Experimental study on the characteristics of frost formation and defrosting water retention between vertical double surfaces with different wettability

Frost formation and defrosting water retention directly affect the heat transfer process of outdoor finned tube heat exchanger, which in turn influences the energy efficiency of air source heat pumps for building heating. Three typical wettability surfaces were prepared, including a bare copper hydrophilic surface (BCS), a hydrophobic copper surface (HCS) and a superhydrophobic copper surface (SHCS). The above three surfaces are combined in pairs to construct three different wettability combinations, which are Combination 1: HCS-BCS, Combination 2: BCS-SHCS and Combination 3: HCS-SHCS, respectively. Frosting-defrosting experiments between vertical double surfaces are carried out on the above combinations. The results illustrated that the combinations with SHCS exhibit excellent frost inhibition properties. Compared with Combination 1, the channel filling rate of Combination 2 and Combination 3 were reduced by 16.79 % and 30.09 % respectively at a frosting time of 60 min. The defrosting time of the combination is determined by the slower defrosting of the two surfaces. Compared with Combination 2, the defrosting rate of Combination 3 is improved by up to about 12.93 %. Avoiding the formation of large-sized liquid films and droplets or utilizing the “absorption” phenomenon caused by wettability differences between surfaces are important measures to reduce the possibility of bridge formation during the defrosting process. And the greater the wettability difference, the more obvious the “absorption” phenomenon became. Spherical droplets on the SHCS can be completely absorbed by the liquid film on BCS under the action of differential surface tension. Neither Combination 2 nor Combination 3 formed a liquid bridge at a surface spacing of 2 mm. The research will provide theoretical support for the selection of fin spacing and fin coating type under different working conditions in practical engineering.

Dispersion of hydrophobic conductive carbon black (CB) in polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) emulsion through liquid bridges and fabrication of PTFE/CB composite film for triboelectric nanogenerators

Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) is a highly electronegative material that is widely used in Triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs). However, due to the ultralow surface energy of PTFE, it is difficult to achieve a stable and even dispersion of hydrophobic carbon black in the PTFE emulsion. In this study, a novel method was used to achieve a stable and uniform dispersion of hydrophobic carbon black in the PTFE emulsion. An interfacial modifier was added to form liquid bridges between PTFE emulsion particles. The hydrophobic carbon black was then dispersed among these liquid bridges, resulting in its uniform distribution within the aqueous emulsion. The addition of 0.75 wt% CB resulted in a 4.6-fold increase in open-circuit voltage and a 3.5-fold increase in short-circuit current density compared to pure PTFE. Moreover, after 10000 cycles, the open-circuit voltage remained mostly unchanged, indicating that it has great potential for use in wearable devices.

Experimental study on coherent structures by small particles suspended in high aspect-ratio (Γ=\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\Gamma =$$\\end{document} 2.5) thermocapillary liquid bridges of high Prandtl number

In time-dependent traveling-wave convection, it has been confirmed that small particles of low Stokes number (St≪\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\ extrm{St}\\ll$$\\end{document} 1) form three-dimensional closed structures known as the particle accumulation structures (PASs). We focus on coherent structures formed in high aspect-ratio thermocapillary liquid bridges (Γ=\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\Gamma =$$\\end{document} 2.5), where oscillatory convection due to the so-called hydrothermal wave instability of mHTW=\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$m_{\ extrm{HTW}}=$$\\end{document} 1 stably emerges, and carry out experimental explorations into the volume ratio dependence of the emergence of coherent structures. Variation in the volume ratio induces the presence of coherent structures with different azimuthal wave numbers, that is, different spatial structures. Among the particles added to the liquid bridge, we perform spatio-temporal tracking of particles to quantify the correlation between the behavior of particles and the spatial structures of coherent structures with different rational wave numbers.

Topographic variation and fluid flow characteristics in rough contact interface

Understanding flow characteristics of fluid near rough contact is important for the design of fluid-based lubrication and basic of tribology physics. In this study, the spreading and seepage processes of anhydrous ethanol in the interface between glass and rough PDMS are observed by a homemade optical in-situ tester. Digital image processing technology and numerical simulation software are adapted to identify and extract the topological properties of interface and thin fluid flow characteristics. Particular attention is paid to the dynamic evolution of the contact interface morphology under different stresses, the distribution of microchannels in the interface, the spreading characteristics of the fluid in contact interface, as well as the mechanical driving mechanism. Original surface morphology and the contact stress have a significant impact on the interface topography and the distribution of interfacial microchannels, which shows that the feature lengths of the microchannels, the spreading area and the spreading rate of the fluid are inversely proportional to the load. And the flow path of the fluid in the interface is mainly divided into three stages: along the wall of the island, generating liquid bridges, and moving from the tip side to the root side in the wedge-shaped channel. The main mechanical mechanism of liquid flow in the interface is the equilibrium between the capillary force that drives the liquid spreading and viscous resistance of solid wall to liquid. In addition, the phenomenon of “trapped air” occurs during the flow process due to the irregular characteristics of the microchannel. This study lays a certain theoretical foundation for the research of microscopic flow behavior of the liquid in the rough contact interface, the friction and lubrication of the mechanical system, and the sealing mechanism.

The mesostructure evolution of cemented paste backfill during mixing

Mixing plays a crucial role in preparing Cemented Paste Backfill (CPB). Shearing, concentration, and particle size distribution are key factors that impact the flow of CPB slurry. This study employed focused beam reflectance measurement and a torque sensor to monitor the flow and structure evolution of CPB during the mixing process. The mixing process can be divided into three stages based on the torque curve: aggregation, destruction, and equilibrium. The structural evolution is the cause of the flow of fresh CPB. Each stage exhibits distinctive characteristics of the fresh CPB. During the aggregation stage, coarse tailings agglomerate via liquid bridges, binders agglomerate by hydration, and fine tailings interact mostly due to interparticle forces. Since the network is heterogeneous, the structure cannot resist shearing forces during the destruction and equilibrium stages. Finally, a rheological model was developed based on the mesostructure evolution mechanism of CPB.

Comparison of contact time dependence of adhesion force between silica/DLC and silica/graphene interfaces by AFM at different humidities

Abstract Understanding adhesion mechanisms is one way to address failures in micro-nano devices. In this paper, the adhesion forces of diamond-like carbon film (DLC) and graphene were measured, and the differences between them were compared. The results show that the adhesion forces on the DLC are dependent on the contact time, but this dependence is disrupted by repeated contacts. The impact of repeated contacts is inevitable. With the increase of repeated contacts, the size of the liquid bridge was changed, and the time to reach saturation became shorter. Finally, at low relative humidity (RH), the adhesion behaviors become independent. In contrast, the adhesion forces of graphene had no contact time dependence under each RH. The adhesion forces remained stable at low and medium RH, and the influence of repeated contacts was weak. At high RH, a sudden increase in adhesion forces caused by repeated contacts can be observed. The adhesion behaviors under different RHs are attributed to the size change of the liquid bridge. The results help people understand the adhesion mechanisms and provide some help in solving the failure problem of micro-nano devices.

Stability or Instability of a Static Liquid Bridge Appearing in Shaped Crystal Growth from Melt via the Pulling-Down Method

Abstract: This study presents sufficient conditions for the stability or instability of the static liquid bridge appearing in crystal growth from the melt of micro-fibers, thin plates, and hollow micro-tubes of predetermined sizes using the pulling-down method [...]

Shear characteristics of root–matrix composites under various interface friction and moisture content conditions

Analysing the composite's adhesion mechanism is necessary to gain a deep understanding of the pipeline blockage phenomenon encountered during negative pressure matrix removal. This study considers the interface suction and liquid bridge changes between the roots and the matrix. In particular, the liquid bridge volume and the interface's effective stress parameters were combined to establish a theoretical model of the shear strength of the root–matrix composite. The main factors affecting root–matrix composite adhesion stability were the root friction coefficient and the composite moisture content. Regarding the influence of the root friction coefficient, the surface structures of the primary and lateral roots were observed using a laser confocal microscope. Using the principal component analysis method, the main factors influencing the friction properties of the root system were identified as the taproot's maximum valley depth (Rv) and the average roughness (Ra) of the profile, as well as the lateral root's maximum peak-to-valley height (Rz) and the average roughness (Rq) of the lateral root profile. The influence of both the main and lateral roots cannot be overlooked when removing inferior seedlings from the substrate. Furthermore, the bond efficiency of the root–matrix composite was calculated, revealing values of 16.03%, 49.87%, and 58.31% under low, medium, and high moisture content conditions, respectively. Finally, direct shear tests were conducted on the complex under dry-wet-dry conditions, yielding an internal friction angle of 14.1656° and a cohesion force of 1.738 ± 0.3 kPa at a water content of 20% (dry-wet). In conclusion, it is recommended to perform the negative pressure removal of inferior seedling substrate blocks during the seedling stage with low water content and underdeveloped root systems. Related research lays the foundation for preventing blockages in negative pressure pipelines.

Synergistically Utilizing a Liquid Bridge and Interconnected Porous Superhydrophilic Structures to Achieve a One-Step Fog Collection Mode.

Conventional fog collection efficiency is subject to the inherent inefficiencies of its three constituent steps: fog capture, coalescence, and transportation. This study presents a liquid bridge synergistic fog collection system (LSFCS) by synergistically utilizing a liquid bridge and interconnected porous superhydrophilic structures (IPHS). The results indicate that the introduction of liquid bridge not only greatly accelerates water droplet transportation, but also facilitates the IPHS in maintaining rough structures that realize stable and efficient fog capture. During fog collection, the lower section of the IPHS is covered by a water layer, however due to the effect of the liquid bridge, the upper section protrudes out, while covered by a connective thin water film that does not obscure the microstructures of the upper section. Under these conditions, a one-step fog collection mode is realized. Once captured by the IPHS, fog droplets immediately coalesce with the water film, and are simultaneously transported into a container under the effect of the liquid bridge. The LSFCS achieves a collection efficiency of 6.5kg m-2 h-1, 2.3 times that of a system without a liquid bridge. This study offers insight on improving fog collection efficiency, and holds promise for condensation water collection or droplet manipulation.

Effects of methanol and ethylene glycol on the interactions between methane hydrate particles and water droplets

Hydrate particle agglomeration is one of the main causes of hydrate blockage in pipelines. Although methanol (MeOH) and ethylene glycol (MeG) are the most used thermodynamic hydrate inhibitors, their effects on the micromechanics behavior of natural gas hydrate particle agglomeration are not clear. In this study, the effects of MeOH and MeG on the interaction force between methane hydrate particles and droplets were investigated using a self-built high-pressure hydrate microforce measuring device. The results suggest that, with the concentration increase from 1% to 7%, for the system with MeOH, the adhesion force reduced by 11% to 33%, while for MeG, the adhesion force reduced by 15% to 43%. On the one hand, the addition of inhibitors reduces the phase equilibrium temperature, which decreases the solidification rate of water in liquid bridge, and on the other hand, they reduce the interfacial tension. both reductions lead to lower adhesion force. Furthermore, in comparison with MeG, the MeOH solutions present a lower contact angle, resulting in a larger hydrate particle-droplet contact area and thus relatively higher adhesion force. The measurement and observation in the present work provide new insight into the mechanism of methanol and ethylene glycol on inhibiting hydrate agglomeration, which is important in advancing the management of hydrate formation in pipelines.

Coherent structures formed by small particles in traveling-wave flows.

We experimentally verify the "phase locking model," which describes the formation of one-dimensional coherent structures by low-Stokes-number particles as proposed by Pushkin etal. [Phys. Rev. Lett. 106, 234501 (2011)0031-900710.1103/PhysRevLett.106.234501] in thermocapillary liquid bridges: When the particles form the coherent structures in time-periodic flows, the synchronous coupling of the toroidal vortex and the azimuthally traveling wave is achieved for a range of azimuthal wave number m. We further propose coherent structures of rational wave numbers in the azimuthal direction and unveil those experimentally.

Formation dynamics of the satellite droplet in the breakup of a symmetrical liquid bridge

Inkjet printing technology has played an irreplaceable role in life science, precision manufacturing, and other frontier fields in recent years. However, the further development of this technology is limited by the fact that its printing resolution is difficult to raise to a higher level. The emerging satellite droplet printing technology offers a new approach for inkjet printing to break through the bottleneck of printing resolution limitations. In this paper, a symmetrical satellite droplet printing strategy is proposed. The effects of the geometric parameters of the satellite droplet generating device, the physical properties of the ink, and the operating parameters on the liquid bridge breakup process and the size of the satellite droplet are systematically studied. The phase field method and adaptive mesh refinement strategy are applied to solve the two-dimensional symmetrical model. The results indicate that the length of the liquid bridge, the radius of the bridge, the viscosity of the ink, and the drainage velocity are all positively correlated with the satellite droplet size, while the surface tension coefficient has a negative correlation with the satellite droplet size. Furthermore, the three-phase contact line at the orifice end will slip toward the center if the initial radius of the liquid bridge is quite large. Based on these investigations and discussions, a corresponding effective working space for satellite droplet printing is obtained, which lays the foundation for the popularization and further development of satellite droplet printing technology.

Expansion and growth of liquid bridge in saline water-in-oil emulsion under synchronized magnetic field coupled low-intensity electric field

Expansion and growth of liquid bridge in saline water-in-oil emulsion under synchronized magnetic field coupled low-intensity electric field

Capillarity in Interfacial Liquids and Marbles: Mechanisms, Properties, and Applications.

The mechanics of capillary force in biological systems have critical roles in the formation of the intra- and inter-cellular structures, which may mediate the organization, morphogenesis, and homeostasis of biomolecular condensates. Current techniques may not allow direct and precise measurements of the capillary forces at the intra- and inter-cellular scales. By preserving liquid droplets at the liquid-liquid interface, we have discovered and studied ideal models, i.e., interfacial liquids and marbles, for understanding general capillary mechanics that existed in liquid-in-liquid systems, e.g., biomolecular condensates. The unexpectedly long coalescence time of the interfacial liquids revealed that the Stokes equation does not hold as the radius of the liquid bridge approaches zero, evidencing the existence of a third inertially limited viscous regime. Moreover, liquid transport from a liquid droplet to a liquid reservoir can be prohibited by coating the droplet surface with hydrophobic or amphiphilic particles, forming interfacial liquid marbles. Unique characteristics, including high stability, transparency, gas permeability, and self-assembly, are observed for the interfacial liquid marbles. Phase transition and separation induced by the formation of nanostructured materials can be directly observed within the interfacial liquid marbles without the need for surfactants and agitation, making them useful tools to research the interfacial mechanics.

Spatiotemporal-Dependent Confinement Effect of Bubble Swarms Enables a Fractal Hierarchical Assembly with Promoted Chirality.

The submarine-confined bubble swarm is considered an important constraining environment for the early evolution of living matter due to the abundant gas/water interfaces it provides. Similarly, the spatiotemporal characteristics of the confinement effect in this particular scenario may also impact the origin, transfer, and amplification of chirality in organisms. Here, we explore the confinement effect on the chiral hierarchical assembly of the amphiphiles in the confined bubble array stabilized by the micropillar templates. Compared with the other confinement conditions, the assembly in the bubble scenario yields a fractal morphology and exhibits a unique level of the chiral degree, ordering, and orientation consistency, which can be attributed to the characteristic interfacial effects of the rapidly formed gas/water interfaces. Thus, molecules with a balanced amphiphilicity can be more favorable for the promotion. Not limited to the pure enantiomers, chiral amplification of the enantiomer-mixed assembly is observed only in the bubble scenario. Beyond the interfacial mechanism, the fast formation kinetics of the confined liquid bridges in the bubble scenario endows the assembly with the tunable hierarchical morphology when regulating the amphiphilicity, aggregates, and confined spaces. Furthermore, the chiral-induced spin selectivity (CISS) effect of the fractal hierarchical assembly was systematically investigated, and a strategy based on photoisomerization was developed to efficiently modulate the CISS effect. This work provides insights into the robustness of confined bubble swarms in promoting a chiral hierarchical assembly and the potential applications of the resulting chiral hierarchical patterns in solid-state spintronic and optical devices.

Numerical study on the effect of actuation parameters on the formation characteristics of metal droplets in magnetohydrodynamic drop-on-demand (DOD) jetting

Numerical simulations have investigated the effects of electromagnetic drive waveform amplitude and pulse width on the state of metal droplet generation during drop-on-demand printing of molten metal aluminum by electromagnetic drive. It indicates that positive and negative pulses of magnetohydrodynamic(MHD) actuation applied to the molten metal in the crucible can form a so-called “push-pull” effect, which is the main mechanism affecting droplet generation and breakup. The positive pressure pulse causes the liquid metal to be extruded outward, and the negative pressure pulse promotes the fluid retraction at the nozzle to promoting the thinning of the liquid bridge and the generation of liquid droplets. With the increase in the amplitude of the applied current, the ejected molten aluminum from the crucible experiences three states: no droplet, single droplet, and droplet with satellite droplets. In the single drop state, the droplet formation time is shortened as the current peak increases and the droplet volume increases with the increase of pulse width. The energy conversion and force changes during droplet formation and falling are analyzed. When the peak kinetic energy of the ejected molten metal exceeds its surface energy, the jet breaks up and generates a single droplet. For the actuation with constant amplitude and duration for positive pulses, extending the duration of negative pulses weakens the "pull" effect, leading to a transition from the generation of a single droplet to multiple droplets. The numerical simulation results provide information on the current amplitude, pulse width, and Weber number range necessary for stable single droplet generation.