Short-time dynamics of partial wetting

Phys Rev Lett. 2008 Jun 13;100(23):234501. doi: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.100.234501. Epub 2008 Jun 11.

Abstract

When a liquid drop contacts a wettable surface, the liquid spreads over the solid to minimize the total surface energy. The first moments of spreading tend to be rapid. For example, a millimeter-sized water droplet will wet an area having the same diameter as the drop within a millisecond. For perfectly wetting systems, this spreading is inertially dominated. Here we identify that even in the presence of a contact line, the initial wetting is dominated by inertia rather than viscosity. We find that the spreading radius follows a power-law scaling in time where the exponent depends on the equilibrium contact angle. We propose a model, consistent with the experimental results, in which the surface spreading is regulated by the generation of capillary waves.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Glycerol / chemistry
  • Models, Chemical*
  • Silicon / chemistry
  • Water / chemistry
  • Wettability*

Substances

  • Water
  • Glycerol
  • Silicon