Low-viscosity Liquid Research Articles

Development of Thermoreversible In-situ gel containing copper ions to cure moderate skin burns

The primary goal of treating burns that are deep and widespread and where the dermis layer has been damaged. And the natural ability of spontaneous re-epithelialization has been severely compromised or eliminated, is wound closure. Burn victims experience mental suffering because of the scarring that arises from their functional and cosmetic damage. Iodine's primary purpose in wound treatment is as an antibacterial agent. For many decades, povidone iodine has been used and studied in wound healing. Copper oxide- based wound dressings accelerate wound healing through angiogenesis, regeneration, and antibacterial qualities. With its powerful antibacterial capabilities, copper is a vital mineral that is important for many physiological and metabolic processes, including angiogenesis, skin production, expression, and stability of extracellular skin proteins. These two characteristics work together to make copper a desirable mineral for enhancing skin wellbeing. As a result, when copper oxide is added to standard items, the result is an improved product. Several compositions for Gel made of poloxamer (p188) and poloxamer(p407). Poloxamer Gels (TPGEL) are excellent thermosensitive polymers for topical application because they exist as low-viscosity liquids at ambient temperature but as Gels at body temperature.

Experimental Study on Friction Coefficient of Gas–Oil Two-Phase Flow in a Large Annulus

Summary The friction coefficient is an important factor that affects the accurate calculation of wellbore annular pressure distribution and is of great significance for the safety of drilling operations. To date, investigations of the friction coefficient mainly focused on low-viscosity liquids (such as water and kerosene). Thus, the obtained friction coefficients have poor applicability in the calculation of gas–oil-based mud two-phase flow. This study reports gas–oil two-phase flow experiments for different viscosities (16–39 mPa·s) in the annulus of a large wellbore, performed using an experimental wellbore (Φ100×Φ60×12 000 mm). The gas–liquid mixture Reynolds number ranges from 500 to 10,000. The results reveal a consistent trend for the variation of the friction coefficient under different flow patterns. For the same mixture Reynolds number, a larger liquid viscosity corresponds to a smaller variation of the friction coefficient among different flow patterns. The larger the superficial liquid velocity, the greater the friction coefficient. Based on the dimensionless analysis of the experimental data, a model for the calculation of the friction coefficient of gas–oil two-phase flow in a large annulus is established, and its prediction error relative to the experimental data is found to be less than 30%. This study can provide a basis for accurate calculations of gas–oil-based mud two-phase flow in drilling wellbores.

On the Performance of Hydrostatic Journal Bearings in Air, Water, and Liquid Nitrogen: Measurements and Predictions

Abstract Turbopumps in reusable and low-cost liquid rocket engines require compact and simple hydrostatic (i.e., externally pressurized) bearings to support large static and dynamic loads at high shaft speeds with no bearing DN (diameter in millimeters times rpm) life limitation. Hydrostatic bearings are one of the key mechanical components for cryogenic turbopumps to improve their reliability and reusability. Hydrostatic bearings offer significantly enhanced durability with very low friction and wear while providing accurate rotor positioning as well as large load and static stiffness characteristics even working with low-viscosity liquids. This work measures static load characteristics of hydrostatic journal bearings in air (25 °C), water (from 25 °C to 70 °C), and liquid nitrogen (−197 °C). Air, water, and liquid nitrogen are used as test fluids for the test bearing to evaluate the effects of fluid properties and temperatures on the bearing performance. A complete set of applied static load, bearing eccentricity, and bearing supply pressure for each test fluid (i.e., air, water, and liquid nitrogen) is presented for the test hydrostatic bearing. Measurements show that the applied static load on the test bearing significantly affects the recorded journal eccentricity ratio, bearing flow rate, and bearing static stiffnesses. Predictions are in good agreement with measurements. The predictable performance of hydrostatic journal bearings in air, water, and liquid nitrogen can further their application in various cryogenic turbopumps for liquid rocket engines.

On the Influence of the Surface Electric Charge on the Regularities of the Formation of Faraday Ripples on the Surface of a Low-Viscosity Liquid

The purpose of the study is to analyze the effect of a surface electric charge on the formation conditions of the Faraday ripples on a horizontal surface of a low-viscosity liquid in a vibration field.Methods. The problem is solved analytically in the limit of small amplitude deformation of the free surface of the liquid. The final relation is derived under the condition that the dissipation is small. The liquid was considered ideally conductive with a surface-distributed electric charge. Results. A simple analytical expression is derived that quantitatively describes the effect of suppression of the Faraday ripple if the surface density of the electric charge increases. It is shown that the increase in the surface density of the electric charge significantly enlarge the threshold value of the vibration field amplitude, the excess of which leads to the formation of ripples. The threshold value of the vibration amplitude is proportional to the viscosity of the liquid and depends on its density, surface tension coefficient and the specific horizontal scale of the ripple.Conclusion. The Faraday’s ripple formed on the surface of a liquid in a vertically oscillating container is very sensitive to the value of the surface density of the electric charge. An increase of the surface charge density leads to suppression of the ripple formation. The effect can be used to prevent the appearance of parasitic convective flows that arise in liquid layers placed in vibration fields. The physical mechanism of Faraday ripple suppression is the rivalry between two qualitatively different types of flows near the liquid surface. Increasing the surface charge density changes the balance of surface forces in such a way as to promote the appearance of aperiodic motions and suppress oscillatory ones. In particular, oscillatory motions responsible for the development of Faraday instability caused by vertical vibrations of the liquid container are suppressed.

Modeling of the operation of a disc pump with the wall roughness consideration

Background: at present, a small number of studies of disk pumps operating on a low-viscosity liquid have been conducted. In addition, among the existing works, numerical calculations are presented, which have a serious discrepancy with the experiments carried out. This article is devoted to numerical simulation of the operation of a disk pump on water, comparison of the calculation results with experimental data.
 Aims: to determine the factors affecting the convergence of the main characteristics with experimental data when performing CFD calculations on a low-viscosity liquid.
 Methods: in this paper, a numerical modeling method based on the solution of discrete analogs of the basic equations of hydrodynamics is used. To compare CFD calculations with the experiment, a test bench was created on which two configurations of the impeller were studied.
 Results: it is shown that for this type of dynamic machines, it is important to take into account the influence of the roughness of solid walls when modeling their operation on a low-viscosity liquid, since it has a significant effect on the characteristics of the disk pump. The obtained characteristics are compared with experimental data, as well as flow patterns in the flow part.
 Conclusions: based on the results of the article, it can be argued that taking into account roughness in numerical calculations of a dynamic pump has a positive effect on convergence with experimental data.

Dynamic acylhydrazone bonds cross-linked chromotropic photonic-ionic skin with self-healing and high resilience for interactive human-machine interface

Advanced skin systems realize perception and interaction with the environment through synergistic electrical and color signals generated by transmitting ions and manipulating photonic structures. Here, inspired by chameleon skins, a novel self-healing and resilient photonic-ionic skin (PI-skin) with electro-optical dual response is ingeniously constructed integrating the ordered micro-nano array and the dynamically covalently cross-linked ionogel. The elaborately designed polycation network with weak inter-chain interactions can promote the uniform distribution of high-content low-viscosity ionic liquid (IL), effectively eliminating energy dissipation and resulting in high resilience. Dynamic acylhydrazone bonds are served as reversible chemical crosslinking to realize high-efficiency self-healing and further enhance resilience. Notably, the artificially manipulated transition of the photonic array from dense packing to non-dense packing endows sensitive chromotropic properties synchronized with electrical response under stretched (Δλ > 130 nm) and compressed (Δλ > 160 nm). Furthermore, by harnessing the correspondence between electrical and optical signals, the control of optical signals over electrical signals is achieved for inputting complex coded information and constructing interactive human–machine interfaces. This work not only inspires the design and construction of high-level artificial skins but also stimulates the development of visual interactive devices and smart electronic/ionic products.

Effect of the density ratio on the oscillatory Saffman–Taylor instability in vertical conical Hele–Shaw cell

The stability of an oscillating interface between two immiscible liquids with a high viscosity contrast in an axisymmetric conical Hele–Shaw cell in dependence on the density ratio is studied experimentally. The symmetry axis of the cell is vertical, while the tangential component of the gravy acts on the axisymmetric interface. The contact line is almost motionless, while the low-viscosity liquid penetrates a high-viscosity one in the form of an axisymmetric “tongue” in the course of an oscillating cycle. The increase in the oscillation amplitude leads to the development of azimuthal patterns (fingers) at the interface. Fingers of a low-viscosity liquid appear when a viscous liquid is being squeezed out of the cell and reach their maximum length at the maximum displacement of the interface. Then, the fingers decrease and are replaced by small depressions penetrating into the low-viscosity liquid in the phase of maximum boundary displacement toward the low-viscosity liquid. The increase in the density ratio of liquids has a stabilizing effect on the interface: The instability threshold is shifted to the higher oscillation amplitudes. Also, the stability threshold is independent of whether the high-viscosity or low-viscosity liquid is denser than the other one. We propose a new dimensionless parameter that controls the stability of the interface—the multiplication of the square root of the capillary number and the dimensionless amplitude of interface oscillations. It is revealed that the critical value of the stability parameter increases linearly with an increase in the density ratio of liquids.

Heterogenous Slippery Surfaces: Enabling Spontaneous and Rapid Transport of Viscous Liquids with Viscosities Exceeding 10 000 mPa s.

Superhydrophobic and slippery lubricant-infused surfaces have garnered significant attention for their potential to passively transport low-viscosity liquids like water (1 mPa s). Despite exciting progress, these designs have proven ineffective for transporting high-viscosity liquids such as polydimethylsiloxane (5500 mPa s) due to their inherent limitations imposed by the homogenous surface design, resulting in high viscous drags and compromised capillary forces. Here, a heterogenous water-infused divergent surface (WIDS) is proposed that achieves spontaneous, rapid, and long-distance transport of viscous liquids. WIDS reduces viscous drag by spatially isolating the viscous liquids and surface roughness through its heterogenous, slippery topological design, and generates capillary forces through its heterogenous wetting distributions. The essential role of surface heterogeneity in viscous liquid transport is theoretically and experimentally verified. Remarkably, such a heterogenous paradigm enables transporting liquids with viscosities exceeding 12 500 mPa s, which is two orders of magnitude higher than state-of-the-art techniques. Furthermore, this heterogenous design is generic for various viscous liquids and can be made flexible, making it promising for various systems that require viscous liquid management, such as micropatterning.

Atomization of High Viscous Liquids Using a MEMS Vibrating Mesh With Integrated Microheater

Aerosol generation is important for a wide range of applications including drug delivery, additive manufacturing, spray cooling, and numerous other applications. However, current aerosol generation devices often have poor droplet uniformity or are limited to low viscosity liquids ( <inline-formula xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$&lt;$</tex-math> </inline-formula> 2 cp). This work presents the development of a Microelectromechanical systems vibrating mesh atomizer capable of atomizing higher viscosity fluids while maintaining high droplet size uniformity. The overall system consists of microfabricated silicon vibrating mesh atomizer, a piezoelectric film, and a flexible thin film microheater. The Si vibrating mesh atomizer was designed to increase atomization thresholds, while the microheater is designed to reduce liquid viscosity to meet the atomization threshold. Atomizers with varying nozzle dimensions were experimentally validated using liquids with varying viscosity and physiochemical properties, such as water, glycerol, propylene glycol, and vegetable glycerin. The microheater was designed to provide local rapid heating with low power consumption of <inline-formula xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$&lt;$</tex-math> </inline-formula> 1 W. The droplet size distribution results show that when fluid viscosity increases, the volume median diameter of droplets increases, and the spray angle decreases. The Si-vibrating mesh atomizer was able to atomize liquids up to 49.73 cP at room temperature compared to normal metallic vibrating mesh atomizers which have a threshold of approximately 2 cP. The integrated heater enabled atomization of liquids with viscosities as high as 111 cP with low heating ( <inline-formula xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$&lt;$</tex-math> </inline-formula> 100 <inline-formula xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$^{\circ}$</tex-math> </inline-formula> C). 2023-0042

Simulation of a metal pellet spraying generator driven by micro-air pressure

Molten metal droplet techniques are one of the important technologies for printing micro-metal parts. At present, the equipment developed for this technology faces some challenges, such as the requirement for a micro-oxygen environment during operation and a complicated manufacturing process. Consequently, a micro-air-pressure driven metal pellet spraying (MPS) 3D printing generator was designed and manufactured using the drop-on-demand technique, which uses simple and low-cost equipment in an atmospheric environment. A 2D axisymmetric model has been proposed to study the mechanism of droplet generation by using a micro-pneumatic MPS generator. In addition, a proprietary pneumatic MPS generator was also used to conduct droplet generation experiments. The validity of the proposed model was verified through the simulation results of the droplet pattern and droplet diameter, which were in good agreement with the experimental ones. The analysis shows that in the droplet injection forming process, surface tension is dominant for low viscosity liquids at a very small Ohnesorge number (Oh &amp;lt; 0.01). The surface tension was conducive to the maintenance of the molten form of the projectile. During droplet injection, the phenomenon of oblate–prolate oscillation occurs due to the non-uniform distribution of pressure inside the droplet. This phenomenon exerts an influence on the accuracy of the droplet flight trajectory and deposition position. This study serves as a good reference for selecting the suitable settings for producing metal droplets using the MPS generator.

Spray coverage analysis of topical sprays formed by cold thermoreversible hydrogels

Objective Sprayable hydrogel formulations are promising topical treatments for skin wounds due to their ability to reduce application pain, prolong drug release, and provide moisture to promote skin healing. These viscoelastic materials, however, present challenges in spray ability which can be overcome using a thermoreversible hydrogels sprayed as lower viscosity liquids at cooler temperatures. The purpose of this research was to evaluate the impact of thermoreversible hydrogel formulation and device characteristics on topical spray patterns and to develop metrics to accurately describe surface coverage. Methods Cold solutions of Pluronic F127 were prepared at 15, 17, and 20% (w/w) and tested to determine their rheological properties. Formulations were sprayed from hand-held atomizing pump dispersers under cold conditions and two distinct areas of their spray patterns analyzed: the concentrated core and the full spray pattern. Traditional analysis of spray patterns was conducted to determine major and minor axes, ovality, and total area. In addition, new scripts were developed to evaluate the concentrated core. Results The full spray pattern analysis quantified the total area over which the spray would extend a flat surface, while the concentrated core analysis quantified the continuous region where a drug dose would be concentrated. The combination of formulation viscosity, sprayer nozzle, and spray distance produced spray patterns from highly concentrated to highly dispersed. These parameters can be controlled to generate desired hydrogel spray patterns for application on skin surfaces. Conclusion The developed metrics provide a basis for topical spray analysis that can inform future product performance.

High-Temperature Measurements on Viscosity and Surface Tension of the Ionic Liquid 1-Ethyl-3-methylimidazolium Bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide ([EMIM][NTf2]) up to 473 K

In the present study, the viscosity and surface tension of the commercial low-viscosity ionic liquid (IL) 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)-imide ([EMIM][NTf2]) were determined by a combination of surface light scattering (SLS) and the pendant-drop (PD) method between (303 and 473) K. Both methods operating at thermodynamic equilibrium were applied inside the same measurement cell at identical experimental conditions under an argon atmosphere at 0.1 MPa. For SLS measurements performed in the temperature range from (303 to 323) K, the overdamped behavior of the surface fluctuations allowed access to the viscosity with an expanded uncertainty of 2.3 % using the surface tensions determined via the PD method with an uncertainty of 2 % as input quantities. Above 323 K up to 473 K, the oscillatory behavior of the probed surface fluctuations by SLS enabled a simultaneous determination of viscosity and surface tension with average expanded uncertainties of (4 and 3) %, respectively. Multiple repetition measurements by both methods have been conducted at 323 K after experiments at larger temperatures up to 473 K, and the consistency of their results could indicate a sound thermal stability of the IL sample. The mutual agreement of the surface tension results from SLS and the PD method between (353 and 473) K demonstrates that both techniques analyze the very same IL surface. For both properties, the results from this work agree well with the majority of experimental data reported in the literature typically up to 353 K. In summary, the viscosity and surface tension results presented in this study contribute to an improved data landscape for this particular IL and ILs in general at elevated temperatures.

Mesoscale simulation investigation of droplet impacting behaviors on cylindrical surfaces

Understanding and controlling the impacting behaviors of droplets on cylindrical surfaces is a key issue for the design of the process intensification in chemical reaction engineering. In the work, the mesoscale dynamics simulation is performed to systematically investigate the effect of impact conditions on the droplet impacting behaviors. As a result, five impacting modes have been distinguished and the competition mechanisms between the impact parameters are revealed. High impact velocity and low liquid viscosity benefit to the spreading and dispersion of impacting droplets, while the increase of surface wettability can promote and inhibit droplet spreading at low and high velocities, respectively. Besides, the machine-learning models are developed to build the quantitative relation between the impacting behaviors and the impact conditions. The machine-learning models can predict droplets impacting behaviors in experiment and simulation, which is of great importance in relevant chemical engineering applications.

Real-time observation of the precursor film for low viscosity liquids spreading on solid substrates by a customized differential laser interference microscopy.

While static wettability is well treated with Young's equation via its static contact angle, theoretical analyses for wetting dynamics are not yet reaching consensus due to a singularity of the spreading forces worked at the vapor/liquid/solid contact line. One plausible explanation to overcome the singularity problem is that there is a so-called precursor film spreading outside the apparent contact line. After its first finding in 1919, many researchers have attempted to visualize its shape. However, because its length and thickness are as small as micrometer and nanometer-order, respectively, its visualization stillremains a challenging issue especially for low-viscosity liquids. In the present study, we developed a differential laser interference microscope, which has a thickness resolution of approximately 2nm at the best, and applied it to the wetting front of 10 cSt of silicone oil spreading on a silicon wafer with an almost constant spreading velocity. As a result, the precursor film of 14µm long and 108nm thick was clearly visualized. While the macro contact line has a finite advancing contact angle of 4.0°, the gradient of the precursor film surface gradually decreased and converged to ~ 0.1° at the micro-contact angle. The shape of the precursor film was independent of the time after the dropping for the range of 600s ± 10%, which is consistent to theoretical estimation. The present study demonstrated that our interferometer simultaneously achieved nanometer thickness resolutions, micrometer in-plane spatial resolution, and at least a millisecond temporal resolution with a simple optical setup.

Low viscosity liquid bridges: Stretching of liquid bridges immersed in a higher viscosity liquid

Low viscosity liquid bridges: Stretching of liquid bridges immersed in a higher viscosity liquid

CFD simulation of a small bubble motion in 3D flow domain: effect of liquid density, viscosity and surface tension

The motion of spherical and slightly deformed bubbles rising rectilinearly in a stagnant liquid was numerically simulated in a fully three-dimensional domain using the CFD solver COMSOL Multiphysics. The interface was tracked by the built-in conservative Level set method on a fixed numerical grid. The purpose of this work was to study the single bubble motion in three industrially used liquids that differ significantly in surface tension, density, and viscosity. The motion of bubbles with diameters up to 1.6 mm was also studied experimentally using a high-speed camera. The data obtained together with the results of theoretical models for bubble motion were used for the validation of the simulation data. Using a 3D domain, very good agreement was obtained in both bubble shape deformations and bubble terminal velocity. The best results were achieved for propanol with low surface tension and low viscosity. In the case of high surface tension and low viscosity liquid (water), both the bubble deformation and the bubble velocity were slightly underestimated. In the case of glycerol (high surface tension and viscosity), the negligible bubble deformation is correctly calculated, but the velocity is again slightly underestimated.Graphical abstract

A Liquid Mirror Resonator.

We present the first experimental demonstration of a Fabry‒Perot resonator that utilizes total internal reflection from a liquid-gas interface. Our hybrid resonator hosts both optical and capillary waves that mutually interact. Except for the almost perfect reflection by the oil-air interface at incident angles smaller than the critical angle, reflections from the liquid-phase boundary permit optically examining thermal fluctuations and capillary waves at the oil surface. Characterizing our optocapillary Fabry‒Perot reveals optical modes with transverse cross-sectional areas of various shapes and longitudinal modes that are separated by the free spectral range. The optical finesse of our hybrid optocapillary resonator is Fo = 60, the optical quality factor is Qo = 20 million, and the capillary quality factor is Qc = 6. By adjusting the wavelength of our laser near the optical resonance wavelength, we measure the liquid's Brownian fluctuations. As expected, the low-viscosity liquid exhibits a distinct frequency of capillary oscillation, indicating operation in the underdamped regime. Conversely, going to the overdamped regime reveals no such distinct capillary frequency. Our optocapillary resonator might impact fundamental studies and applications in surface science by enabling optical interrogation, excitation, and cooling of capillary waves residing in a plane. Moreover, our optocapillary Fabry‒Perot might permit photographing thermal capillary oscillation, which the current state-of-the-art techniques do not support.

Ultrafast measurement of laser-induced shock waves

We present measurements of laser-induced shockwave pressure rise time in liquids on a sub-nanosecond scale, using custom-designed single-mode fiber optic hydrophone. The measurements are aimed at the study of the shockwave generation process, helping to improve the effectiveness of various applications and decrease possible accidental damage from shockwaves. The developed method allows measurement of the fast shockwave rise time as close as 10 µm from an 8 µm sized laser-induced plasma shockwave source, significantly improving the spatial and temporal resolution of the pressure measurement over other types of hydrophones. The spatial and temporal limitations of the presented hydrophone measurements are investigated theoretically, with actual experimental results agreeing well with the predictions. To demonstrate the capabilities of the fast sensor, we were able to show that the shockwave rise time is linked to liquid viscosity exhibiting logarithmic dependency in the low viscosity regime (from 0.4 cSt to 50 cSt). Additionally, the shockwave rise time dependency on propagation distance close to the source in water was investigated, with shock wave rise times measured down to only 150 ps. It was found that at short propagation distances in water halving the shock wave peak pressure results in the rise time increase by approximately factor of 1.6. These results extend the understanding of shockwave behavior in low viscosity liquids.

Ethyl Cellulose-Based Thermoreversible Organogel Photoresist for Sedimentation-Free Volumetric Additive Manufacturing.

Liquid photoresists are abundant in the field of light-based additive manufacturing (AM). However, printing unsupported directly into a vat of material in emerging volumetric AM technologies-typically a benefit due to fewer geometric constraints and less material waste-can be a limitation when printing low-viscosity liquid monomers and multimaterial constructs due to part drift or sedimentation. With ethyl cellulose (EC), a thermoplastic soluble in organic liquids, a simple three-component transparent thermoreversible gel photoresist with melting temperature of ≈64 °C is formulated. The physically crosslinked network of the gel leads to storage moduli in the range of 0.1-10kPa and maximum yield stress of 2.7kPa for a 10 wt% EC gel photoresist. Nonzero yield stress enables sedimentation-free tomographic volumetric patterning in low-viscosity monomer without additional hardware or modification of apparatus. In addition, objects inserted into the print container can be suspended in the gel material which enables overprinting of multimaterial devices without anchors connecting the object to the printing container. Flexural strength is also improved by 100% compared to the neat monomer for a formulation with 7 wt% EC.

Flow Measurement

The Flowmeter is a measuring instrument that is not mentioned every day, but is widely used and r&lt;regularly by many people in various environments. Thanks to it we can determine the flow rate of a liquid that is transported through a pipe or system, as well as the speed. The use of these can help in any process in which it is required to probe the fluid that is being used during the manufacture of a product in which the measurement of the amount of liquid is necessary. By using flow sensors, a measurement is made through a flow rate or volumetric flow rate of a fluid. These instruments tend to be placed directly in the pipes that transport a raw material. Also, they are usually used to quantify other low viscosity liquids, such as: Carbonated beverages, alcoholic beverages, fuel, cleaning products, etc. This type of flow is compatible with some digital systems, in which we can visualize the net quantity that passes through them. This type of sensor is placed in a pipe through which a non-corrosive liquid flows and measures the amount of raw material.