Numerical Analysis of Droplet Impacting on an Immiscible Liquid via Three-Phase Field Method

Micromachines (Basel). 2023 Apr 27;14(5):951. doi: 10.3390/mi14050951.

Abstract

In this work, we establish a two-dimensional axisymmetric simulation model to numerically study the impacting behaviors between oil droplets and an immiscible aqueous solution based on the three-phase field method. The numerical model is established by using the commercial software of COMSOL Multiphysics first and then validated by comparing the numerical results with the previous experimental study. The simulation results show that under the impact of oil droplets, a crater will form on the surface of the aqueous solution, which firstly expands and then collapses with the transfer and dissipation of kinetic energy of this three-phase system. As for the droplet, it flattens, spreads, stretches, or immerses on the crater surface and finally achieves an equilibrium state at the gas-liquid interface after experiencing several sinking-bouncing circles. The impacting velocity, fluid density, viscosity, interfacial tension, droplet size, and the property of non-Newtonian fluids all play important roles in the impact between oil droplets and aqueous solution. The conclusions can help to cognize the mechanism of droplet impact on an immiscible fluid and provide useful guidelines for those applications concerning droplet impact.

Keywords: bouncing; droplet impacting; numerical analysis; sinking; three-phase filed method.

Grants and funding

This research was funded by the Young Elite Scientists Sponsorship Program by Heilongjiang Province (2022QNTJ013), the Heilongjiang Natural Science Foundation Project (grant no. LH2022E116), Basic scientific research operating expenses project of Heilongjiang Province (grant no. 145209402), Special projects for central guidance of local scientific and technological development (grant no. SBZY2021E043), the Postdoctoral Research Foundation of China (2022M720685) and the Heilongjiang Provincial Postdoctoral Science Foundation (LBH-Z22001).