The transition in settling velocity of surfactant-covered droplets from the Stokes to the Hadamard-Rybczynski solution

DOI10.1016/J.EUROMECHFLU.2017.05.007MaRDI QIDQ1672244zbMATH OpenOpenAlexFDO

Authors Åsmund Ervik, Erik Bjørklund

Publication date 7 September 2018

Published in European Journal of Mechanics. B. Fluids (Search for Journal in Brave)

Full work available at URL https://arxiv.org/abs/1712.01567

zbMATH Keywords

settling velocitysurfactantsfalling drop

Mathematics Subject Classification ID

Navier-Stokes equations for incompressible viscous fluids (76D05) Stokes and related (Oseen, etc.) flows (76D07) Capillarity (surface tension) for incompressible viscous fluids (76D45)

Abstract: The exact solution for a small falling drop is a classical result by Hadamard and Rybczynski. But experiments show that small drops fall slower than predicted, giving closer agreement with Stokes' result for a falling hard sphere. Increasing the drop size, a transition between these two extremes is found. This is due to surfactants present in the system, and previous work has led to the stagnant-cap model. We present here an alternative approach which we call the continuous-interface model. In contrast to the stagnant-cap model, we do not consider a surfactant advection-diffusion equation at the interface. Taking instead the normal and tangential interfacial stresses into account, we solve the Stokes equation analytically for the falling drop with varying interfacial tension. Some of the solutions thus obtained, e.g. the hovering drop, violate conservation ofenergy unless energy is provided directly to the interface. Considering the energy budget of the drop, we show that the terminal velocity is bounded by the Stokes and the Hadamard-Rybczynski results. The continuous-interface model is then obtained from the force balance for surfactants at the interface. The resulting expressions gives the transition between the two extremes, and also predicts that the critical radius, below which drops fall like hard spheres, is proportional to the interfacial surfactant concentration. By analysing experimental results from the literature, we confirm this prediction, thus providing strong arguments for the validity of the proposed model.

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Cites work

• scientific article; zbMATH DE number 592733 (Why is no real title available?)
• Advanced Transport Phenomena
• On bubbles with small immobile adsorbed films rising in liquids at low Reynolds numbers
• On strong anomalous diffusion
• On the deformation and drag of a falling viscous drop at low Reynolds number
• Stokes flow past bubbles and drops partially coated with thin films. Part 1. Stagnant cap of surfactant film – exact solution
• The motion of bubbles in a vertical temperature gradient
• Universality and imaginary potentials in advection–diffusion equations in closed flows

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