Sessile Water Droplets Research Articles

Freezing of sessile water droplets on titanium alloy surfaces with various roughness: An in-situ experimental study

The threat of icing caused by supercooled water droplets on aircraft components such as wings and compressors is a serious concern for aviation safety, and the surface roughness of these components can experience alterations due to environmental corrosion or damage. However, the potential impact of surface roughness variation on their susceptibility to icing remains unclear. In this study, the freezing experiments of sessile water droplets on the surfaces of a typical aero-engine titanium alloy (ZTC4) with varying roughness were conducted using a laser confocal micro-Raman spectrometer with a heating/freezing stage. Three freezing stages were captured via an optical microscope, and the temperature changes of water droplet during the cooling process were explored through heat transfer simulation. In addition, the relationship between Raman peaks and temperatures of frozen droplets was quantified. The results of 200 repeated experiments demonstrated that the freezing temperatures of sessile water droplets exhibited a two-parameter Weibull distribution, and there was a nonlinear positive correlation between the mean freezing temperature and surface roughness, which implied that environmental corrosion or damage leading to an increase in surface roughness may significantly elevate the probability of component icing and safety issues.

Water droplet evaporation in varied gravity and electric fields

Sessile water droplet evaporation in varied gravity and electric fields has been experimentally studied. Specifically, the influences of gravity and electric fields are investigated in the context of the heat flux distribution beneath the droplets, as well as the droplet mechanics and resulting shapes. Experimental testing was carried out during a European Space Agency (ESA) Parabolic Flight Campaign (PFC 66). The droplets tested evaporated with a pinned contact line, a single wettability condition, and varied droplet volume and substrate heat flux. The peak heat transfer was located at the contact line for all cases. The peak heat flux, average heat flux, and droplet evaporation rate were shown to vary strongly with gravity, with higher values noted for hypergravity conditions and lower values in microgravity conditions. The droplet thermal inertia was shown to play a significant role, with larger droplets taking more time to reach thermal equilibrium during the parabolic testing period. No significant impact of the electric field on the droplet evaporation was noted for these test conditions.

Ammonia absorption by water droplet in a small controlled atmosphere wind tunnel

The mass transfer characteristics during ammonia absorption into a sessile water droplet in a small controlled-atmosphere wind tunnel were investigated using particle tracking velocimetry (PTV) with polystyrene microspheres. The results showed that the flow field inside the droplet transformed from Marangoni convection to Rayleigh convection in the absence of gas flow. As the gas velocity increased, the drag force-induced circulation inhibited the Marangoni convection in the initial stage of the mass transfer process and Rayleigh convection in the advanced stage. However, the suppressed Marangoni convection cells recurred at high initial ammonia concentrations. Compared with the initial ammonia concentration in the wind tunnel and droplet size, the gas velocity significantly increased the gas-phase mass transfer coefficient. Furthermore, a calculation model for ammonia absorption by a moving droplet was derived based on the Colburn analogy and the two-film theory. The gas-phase mass transfer coefficients calculated using the model coincided with the experimental results. These results will help the design of water curtains.

Effects of heterogenous wettability on evaporation from a simulated soil pore: Stick-slip evaporative mode and contact line motion

The Ogallala Aquifer, a primary irrigation water source in the High Plains region of the United States, is declining, thereby necessitating new water conservation strategies. This paper investigates the impact of mixed wettability on the evaporation dynamics of a 10-µl sessile water droplet placed within simulated soil pores comprised of hydrophobic Teflon beads (CA ∼ 108°) and hydrophilic glass (CA ∼ 41°) beads with 2.38-mm diameters, where homogeneous and heterogenous (i.e., mixed hydrophobicity and hydrophilicity) wettability configurations were investigated. Experiments were performed in an environmental chamber where the relative humidity and temperature were 60% ± 0.1% RH and 20 ± 0.4 °C, respectively. Wettability influenced evaporation times, with homogeneous hydrophobic pores (i.e., three Teflon beads) and heterogenous one glass, two Teflon pores having the longest average evaporation times of 40 and 39 min, respectively. Homogeneous hydrophilic pores (i.e., three glass beads) and heterogenous two glass, one Teflon pores exhibited evaporation times of 34 min. Evaporation times for heterogenous combinations trended based on the predominant wettability. Contact angles and the projected length of contact were analyzed from videos to capture pinning and depinning during evaporation. For many cases including hydrophobicity, contact angles were less than 90°, and in some configurations, water would be pinned on a Teflon bead, whereas depinning (i.e., moving) on a glass bead. Stick-slip evaporation was observed, where the evaporating droplet switched between constant contact radius and constant contact area evaporative modes to minimize droplet surface energy. The results suggest wettability alterations in agricultural settings may reduce evaporation.

Flow dynamics and size-based sorting of bidispersed colloidal particles in evaporating sessile water droplets: substrate heating and wettability effects

Flow dynamics and size-based sorting of bidispersed colloidal particles in evaporating sessile water droplets: substrate heating and wettability effects

Study on the mechanism of sessile droplets evaporation enhanced by the electric field

The evaporation characteristics of a sessile droplet under a direct current electric field were numerically investigated, and a numerical model was developed based on the arbitrary Lagrange-Euler method, combining the flow, heat transfer, vapour transport, and electrostatic equations. The simulations were validated to be in good agreement with previously reported experiments. The results demonstrate that the electric field can enhance the evaporation of the sessile droplet with different evaporative cooling numbers (initial electric field intensity E0 = 280 kV·m−1; 32.9% decrease in the evaporation time for water) by the following three methods: increasing the surface area of the droplet evaporation (2.6%) through the electric-field-induced deformation, improving the heat transfer efficiency between the droplet and substrate (droplet average temperature increases by 2.3 K) through the internal vortex, and by enhancing the shearing effect on the vapour layer (450.3% increase in vapour diffusion distance dc) through the external vortex. Additionally, the evaporation of a sessile water droplet undergoing thermocapillary convection is further enhanced under the electric field (E0 = 280 kV·m−1; 20.0% decrease in the evaporation time). As the inhomogeneous temperature distribution inside the droplet was eliminated by thermocapillary convection, the evaporation efficiency was dominated by the increased surface area of the droplet evaporation and the enhanced shearing effect on the vapour layer. These results will provide a better understanding of the electro-hydrodynamic enhanced droplet evaporation.

OFFSET COALESCENCE BEHAVIOR OF IMPACTING LOW-SURFACE TENSION DROPLET ON HIGH-SURFACE-TENSION DROPLET

The impact of droplets of varying surface tension and subsequent spreading over a solid surface are inherent features in printing applications. In this regard, an experimental study of the impact of two drops of varied surface tension is carried out where the sessile water droplet on a hydrophilic substrate is impacted upon by another droplet of sequentially lowered surface tension. The impacts are studied for different impact velocities and offsets with respect to the mid-plane of the two colliding droplets. Sodium dodecyl sulfate is used to: (i) alter the surface tension without altering the viscosity, (ii) study the various parameters affecting the spreading length viz. the surface tension, (iii) offset between the drops, and (iv) impact velocity. The spreading lengths are obtained through image processing of the captured footage of the impact dynamics by a high-speed camera. It is found out that upon lowering the surface tension, the maximum and equilibrium spreading length varies to a significant extent, and the nature of the spreading dynamics changes. Both side- and top-view imaging are performed to understand the overall hydrodynamics. There is also a substantial change in "drawback" when dissimilarity in surface tension between the impacting droplets exists. Finally, a fit model is obtained to predict the maximum spread length of the various cases.

On the dynamics of head-on collision of sessile droplets on the traveling substrate

In this work, the dynamics of the head-on collision of two sessile water droplets, namely the moving droplet and pinning droplet, on a traveling substrate was experimentally investigated. Unlike the traditional scenario of sessile droplets collision, the traveling substrate propelled the moving droplet attached to it to move at a certain speed. The results revealed that there are only two distinct regimes of collision consequences: coalescence without separation and separation with separation. A series of time-resolved photographic images mapping all the collision regimes in the parameter space of Capillary number and size ratio were used to identify the controlling factors for different collision results. The breakup of the receding meniscus in separation regime was discussed in detail as it is caused by the change of the droplet morphology. The findings indicated that the length of the receding meniscus played a significant role in the droplet impact dynamics, and when it exceeded about 8.2 mm, the receding meniscus broke up. Furthermore, it was demonstrated that the sum of the volume of initial pinning droplet’s receding meniscus and the volume of the moving droplet before collision is equal to the volume of the receding meniscus at its maximum length after collision. The critical Capillary number/size ratio for the transition between these two regimes was derived based on the volume principle before and after the collision. The model-predicated results show good agreement with the experiments. The findings could contribute to a better understanding of the droplet collision dynamics and the optimization of the anti-icing, self-cleaning and inkjet printing devices.

Experimental Investigation of the Water Droplet Evaporation on Inclined Surfaces by Taguchi and ANOVA Optimization Analysis

Abstract We experimentally investigated the evaporation characteristics of a sessile water droplet on a glass substrate with different surface roughness levels. The influence of five parameters is evaluated for the evaporation process: substrate temperature (30 °C, 45 °C, and 60 °C), surface roughness (P0, P600, and P60), droplet volume (3, 5, and 8 µL), water droplets initial temperature (30 °C, 40 °C, and 60 °C), and inclination angle (0 deg, 45 deg, and 75 deg) of the glass substrate. The Taguchi orthogonal array design of L27 is utilized to establish minimal candidate trial points for experimental works, and more trials have been conducted to quantify the effects accurately. Then, analysis of variance (ANOVA) has been used to evaluate the evaporation times for the sessile droplets. The results indicate that evaporation times decrease with rising substrate temperatures, increasing substrate inclination angle, and increasing initial water droplet temperatures. In contrast, evaporation times rise with increasing surface roughness and droplet volumes. After evaluation of the ANOVA analysis, surface roughness levels and droplet volumes are considered the most influential parameters after substrate temperatures, which is the most effective parameter on the evaporation times. On the other hand, initial water droplet temperatures and substrate inclination angle are less effective considering droplet evaporation times. A linear regression fit was derived via ANOVA analysis for the evaporation time, and the best mean deviation was found to be 10% from the experiments. The experimental outcomes were compared to previous research, and correlations were derived. The proposed correlation has given good results considering experimental and literature data.

Simulation of a sessile nanofluid droplet freezing with an immersed boundary-lattice Boltzmann model

The freezing process of a sessile nanofluid droplet has been reported to behave differently from a pure sessile water droplet in terms of freezing dynamics and the final shape of the ice droplet. When nanoparticles are added to the water droplet, instead of forming a pointed tip on the top, the completely frozen droplet exhibits a flat plateau shape. To investigate this unique scenario, we developed a lattice Boltzmann (LB) model that combines the multiphase solidification model (MSM) with the immersed boundary method (IBM). The MSM is based on our previous work of simulating the freezing of a pure droplet, while the IBM is used to handle the interaction forces between the suspended particles and the different phases in the freezing droplet. Using this LB model, we succeeded in simulating the formation process of the frozen plateau shape. The simulation takes into account the dynamics of the dispersed particles, including their expulsion from the propagation freezing front and their segregation, which brings the liquid water to the edge. We compared the simulated freezing shape profiles with the experimental images and found that the shape forms in a similar manner. We then used the developed model to explore more cases, considering the effects of droplet contact angles and particle volume concentration. Results show that the distribution of particles and final droplet height depend on the surface wettability, as the freezing front exhibits a concave/convex shape on hydrophilic/hydrophobic surfaces, resulting in different particle separation distributions on the freezing front interface. Furthermore, our simulation results confirm the experimental conclusion that the plateau size on the frozen top increases with particle concentration and appears to be independent of the initial droplet contact angle.

A modeling study on freezing characteristics of sessile and pendant water droplets on cold plate surfaces

The freezing phenomena of sessile and pendant water droplets on horizontal and inverted surfaces are widespread in industrial fields, which always causes great structural destruction and energy waste. Considering the gravity effect on the droplet profile, a theoretical model is developed to calculate the freezing characteristics of sessile and pendant droplets and experimentally verified. The average deviation of the model in the droplet freezing time is 10.53 % and the determination coefficient in the droplet profile is above 98 %. Based on the model, the freezing characteristics of sessile and pendant droplets under different water droplet volumes (characterized by the Bond number, Bo), contact angles and cold plate temperatures are investigated. When Bo ≤ 1, there is almost no difference in the freezing characteristics of sessile and pendant droplets. When Bo > 1, obvious differences are observed with a pendant droplet having a higher height and a longer freezing time. For both sessile and pendant droplets, the freezing height is approximately proportional to the initial height with the sessile droplet yielding a smaller proportion coefficient. Their freezing times can be written as a function of the Bond number, contact angle and cold plate temperature. Under the same condition, the ratio of freezing time by the pendant droplet to that by the sessile one is scaled as Bo1/4 when Bo > 1. The findings in this study help better understand the freezing characteristics of the sessile and pendant droplets and thus optimize anti-icing and anti-frosting technologies.

Analysis of freezing of a sessile water droplet on surfaces over a range of wettability

HypothesisNonwetting surfaces, by virtue of their water-repelling trait, offer desirable anti-icing characteristics. Surface roughness, type and wettability are important interfacial characteristics that affect the icing dynamics that can be tailored to achieve desired anti-icing designs. Experiments and SimulationsThe present study systematically explores the effect of surface roughness on the freezing behaviour of water droplets on surfaces ranging in their wettability. Surfaces with tailored textures and wettability were fabricated using chemical etching and electrodeposition by varying the voltage. The surfaces studied include bare copper, five different dry nonwetting copper surfaces, and five different lubricant-infused copper surfaces that ranged in surface texture fractal dimension from nearly 1.0 to 1.92 and wettability measures of average water contact angle from 91° to 162° and sliding angle from less than 3° to greater than 50°. A computational model is developed to simulate the freezing dynamics on the surfaces studied. FindingsWith increasing roughness features, the freezing time increased due to the dual effects of increased contact angle and poor interfacial conductance caused by trapped air or infused liquid within the asperity textures. In general, the nonwetting surfaces increased the freezing time by a factor of at least 1.33 and up to about 3.2 compared to freezing on bare copper surfaces. The computational model shows close agreement with experimental measurements on the freeze front progression as well as freeze time. Design guidelines on the suitability of the different nonwetting surfaces for anti-icing purposes are derived from the systematic study, with the overall design recommendation favoring lubricant infused surfaces.

Independent microscale sensing of phase interface and surface temperature during droplet evaporation

Despite the important and pervasive nature of evaporative heat transfer phenomena, fundamental questions still remain about the microscopic processes that occur in and around individual droplets on a surface. In order to understand the underlying physics behind evaporative heat transfer, it is critical to have information at the individual droplet level regarding the surface temperature distribution with time as well as the location and speed of the moving multiphase contact line (MCL). In this work, a multifunctional microscale device comprised of a resistance heater, an array of spatially distributed thin-film resistance temperature detectors, and a phase interface sensing capacitance micro-sensor array has been utilized to measure the local heat transfer characteristics and MCL behavior simultaneously for the evaporation of individual sessile water droplets on a horizontal heated surface. The resistance- and capacitance-based operating principles of the micro-device means that it is capable of detecting temperature changes and tracking MCL at the microscale in real time even for applications with limited or no visibility such as within thermal management hardware or processing equipment. Importantly, having knowledge of the MCL’s location and speed with microscale precision allows for its influence on surface temperature and heat transfer to be directly studied rather than inferred. Results show that the MCL passage precedes the change in local surface temperature and the duration of the time difference between these events depends on the MCL’s speed. In addition, the passage of the MCL accounts for more than 70% of the overall temperature change during the evaporation process.

Influence of slippage on thermocapillary flow induced by a Gaussian temperature distribution on small-scale water droplets driven by surface acoustic waves

In the present work, we theoretically analyze the influence of thermocapillary flow on the atomization by surface acoustic waves (SAWs) of a sessile water droplet exposed to a high-frequency acoustic field and placed over a substrate with slippage at the wall. Thermocapillary flow is induced by imposing a Gaussian temperature profile along the free surface of the droplet. Such fluid flow in conjunction with the acoustically-driven capillary waves at the free surface prior to atomization under the influence of the slip phenomenon is analyzed by applying the lubrication theory to the flow field governing equations, leading to the derivation of an evolution equation written in terms of the acoustic capillary number, the Marangoni number, and the substrate slip coefficient. The numerical solution of the evolution equation has led us to propose the combined influence of thermocapillary and slip phenomena as a valuable means of assisting in the regulation of aerosol diameter in SAW atomization, capable of exerting a significant influence on the interfacial dynamics of droplets prior to atomization.

Electric Field-Induced Water Condensation Visualized by Vapor-Phase Transmission Electron Microscopy.

Understanding the nanoscale water condensation dynamics in strong electric fields is important for improving the atmospheric modeling of cloud dynamics and emerging technologies utilizing electric fields for direct air moisture capture. Here, we use vapor-phase transmission electron microscopy (VPTEM) to directly image nanoscale condensation dynamics of sessile water droplets in electric fields. VPTEM imaging of saturated water vapor stimulated condensation of sessile water nanodroplets that grew to a size of ∼500 nm before evaporating over a time scale of a minute. Simulations showed that electron beam charging of the silicon nitride microfluidic channel windows generated electric fields of ∼108 V/m, which depressed the water vapor pressure and effected rapid nucleation of nanosized liquid water droplets. A mass balance model showed that droplet growth was consistent with electric field-induced condensation, while droplet evaporation was consistent with radiolysis-induced evaporation via conversion of water to hydrogen gas. The model quantified several electron beam-sample interactions and vapor transport properties, showed that electron beam heating was insignificant, and demonstrated that literature values significantly underestimated radiolytic hydrogen production and overestimated water vapor diffusivity. This work demonstrates a method for investigating water condensation in strong electric fields and under supersaturated conditions, which is relevant to vapor-liquid equilibrium in the troposphere. While this work identifies several electron beam-sample interactions that impact condensation dynamics, quantification of these phenomena here is expected to enable delineating these artifacts from the physics of interest and accounting for them when imaging more complex vapor-liquid equilibrium phenomena with VPTEM.

Construction of an active humidity regulation setup for NMR/MRI-Observation and simulation of the controlled evaporation of sessile water droplets

Controlling and improving processes like for example the production of organic semiconductors via printing depends on understanding the interplay of wetting and evaporation of complex fluids. Therefore, examination of the time dependent composition of complex fluid droplets during wetting or evaporation is of interest. The evaporation rate of sessile droplets containing largely water depends on the vapor pressures of the individual components and on the humidity (or partial pressure) of the surrounding gas phase. Hence, for a complete picture of an evaporation process and the comparability of the results of different measurements, it is essential to measure and control the humidity and temperature in the measurement compartment. Accordingly, climate chambers are available in different scales to fit a variety of techniques like contact angle goniometry to obtain results in a controlled atmosphere. We recently reported the application of MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging) and spatially resolved NMR (Nuclear Magnetic Resonance) spectroscopy for the examination of the evaporation of sessile droplets on surfaces in 10 mm NMR tubes. These are considered to be closed compartments. Here, we present an apparatus to a) measure and b) control the relative humidity within the sample compartment of the NMR setup by introducing preconditioned gas into the NMR tube. We monitored the evaporation of water droplets using RARE images and compared the volume decay with a) a simple diffusive evaporation model and b) with detailed FEM (finite element numerical model) simulations using COMSOL for validation. We find three evaporation regimes depending on the flow rate as well as on the distance of the gas outlet and the evaporating droplet. In one of the sample configurations tested the evaporation takes place in such a way that it can be described with the help of the simple diffusive model without convection. Thus, the presented approach opens comparative measurements with other methods as well as the observation of droplet evaporation in very dry or very humid environments with and without the influence of convection. Finally, using PRESS spectra, it is shown that the evaporation rate of water from a water/DMSO droplet can be controlled. This shows how the setup presented here can be used to study the evaporation of droplets of more complex mixtures.

On the measurement of local vapor concentration around sessile water droplet with high spatiotemporal resolution

Droplet evaporation is a seemingly simple heat and mass transfer process, while of which high-fidelity characterization of the vapor field remains a long-standing challenge. In this brief communication, we report the first experimental observation of the local vapor concentration of the sessile water droplet with unprecedently high spatiotemporal resolution. The experimental measurement was enabled by a tailored quartz-enhanced photoacoustic spectroscopy (QPEAS) system. In this system, a near-infrared, continuous-wave, distributed feedback laser at 1392 nm was utilized to excite the photoacoustic signal of water vapor above the sessile droplet. The photoacoustic signal between the prongs of a tiny quartz tuning fork (QTF) was detected and further interpreted as the vapor concentration information. The feasibility of QEPAS for droplet evaporation characterization was carefully verified. As a demonstration, we measured the time histories of water vapor concentration above the evaporating droplet in both open and closed chambers at the spatial resolution of ∼30 micrometers and temporal resolution of 0.1 ms. Interestingly, we found the vapor concentration above the evaporating droplet in open ambient featured distinct fluctuations indiscernible to the conventional photography method. Such fluctuation has never been reported before and further corroborated the insufficiency of quasi-steady approximation for droplet evaporation. This work not only extends the application of QEPAS to more complicated physical processes, but also advances the state of the art in the experimental characterization of sessile water droplet evaporation, which opens up a new possibility to unravel the intricate mechanism of the vapor-mediated droplet motions.

Numerical Analysis of the Free-Falling Process of a Water Droplet at Different Temperatures

The collision behavior and ice formation of a water droplet are affected by its falling process. In this paper, the two-phase flow of air and a water droplet at a specific temperature is adopted to investigate the processes of falling and freezing of a single water droplet. To track the air–water droplet interface and the temperature distribution, the level-set method and the non-isothermal flow coupling method are used, and the freezing model is added into the water’s control equations. The numerical results indicated that with the initial temperature at 283.15 K and the spherical shape, the water droplet changes to the shape of a straw hat at 293.15 K and a drum at 293.15 K but an oval face in freezing temperatures at 0.10 s. There is an obvious drop in the downward velocity when the water droplet falls in mild temperatures at 0.09 s. The downward velocity of the water droplet in air at sub-zero temperatures has a continuous increase during the time span from 0 s to 0.10 s. There is also an obvious difference when the water droplet impinges on the solid bottom. Lastly, the freezing of sessile water droplets attached on the horizontal surface is helpful to reveal the unique phase change process of water droplets in cold air.

Experimental investigation on the effect of vapor environment on the pattern evolutions during sessile water droplet evaporation at low pressures

A series of experiments for water droplet evaporation into ethanol and nitrogen vapors at low pressures are carried out to investigate the influence of vapor environment on the evolution of thermal patterns induced by water droplet evaporation. Results show that when the water droplet evaporates in the ethanol vapor, the initial evaporation induces the surface fluid flows from the triple-line to the droplet apex. When the thermal flow loses stabilities, the surface temperature oscillations are shown as types of thermal waves. The transition of thermal patterns from gear-like temperature distribution, shifting multi-cells to the Bénard-Marangoni cell is captured and the wave number increases firstly, and then remains during the pattern evolutions. Reducing the initial pressure leads to an enhancement of the thermocapillary instabilities, which brings the critical time for the pattern transition forward. In the case of nitrogen environment, the transition of thermal patterns from central warmer region to the shifting multi-cells is recorded. The surface temperature in nitrogen environment is lower than that in ethanol vapor. During the whole evaporation process, the tangential temperature gradient and the normal temperature gradient alter as the variation of droplet height, and their relative magnitude determines the internal flow and the evolution of thermal patterns. Moreover, when ethanol vapor is absorbed by the water droplet, the heat of solution is released, and the solutal-Marangoni convection is induced to suppress the buoyancy flow.

Monitoring the evaporation of a sessile water droplet with a chromatic confocal measurement system.

In this Letter, a chromatic confocal measurement system with high stability and accuracy is presented to monitor the evaporation of a sessile water droplet. The stability and accuracy of the system are tested by measuring the thickness of a cover glass. To compensate for the measurement error caused by the lensing effect of the sessile water droplet, a spherical cap model is proposed. Together with the parallel plate model, the contact angle of the water droplet can also be obtained. The evaporation process of sessile water droplet under different environment is monitored experimentally in this work, which demonstrates the potential application of chromatic confocal measurement system in the field of experimental fluid dynamics.