Numerical investigation of droplet impact dynamics on Janus-textured heated substrates

Abstract

Janus-textured substrates refer to surfaces with heterogeneous topographies, which have received particular attention recently due to their potential application in manipulating droplet-bouncing behaviors [Li et al., Nat. Phys. 12, 606–612 (2016)]. In this paper, the droplet impact dynamics on the Janus-textured heated substrates are numerically investigated with an improved thermal lattice Boltzmann method. A comprehensive parametric study is conducted by varying the wettability, the Jakob number, the Weber number, and the surface topographies. With different control parameters, three distinct boiling regimes are observed, i.e., the contact boiling regime, the transition boiling regime, and the film boiling regime (Leidenfrost state). To reveal the underlying physics, the distributions of the unbalance Young's force, the thermophoretic force, and the vapor pressure difference in the system are theoretically analyzed. As for the self-propulsion behaviors, it is find that the droplet tends to move toward the denser side (area with more pillar arrays) for the contact boiling regime. However, when the droplet is under the Leidenfrost state, its bouncing dynamics depend on the combined effects of the Weber number and the wettability, and a decrease in wettability induces the droplet to migrate toward the sparser side (area with fewer pillar arrays). These physical insights enrich the fundamental understanding of the droplet-bouncing dynamics on heated substrates and also provide guidelines for designing advanced surfaces to manipulate the droplet-bouncing behavior.