Gas-Assisted Droplet Impact on a Solid Surface

Abstract

An experimental, numerical, and theoretical investigation of the behavior of a gas-assisted liquid droplet impacting on a solid surface is presented with the aim of determining the effects of a carrier gas on the droplet deformation dynamics. Experimentally, droplets were generated within a circular air jet for gas Reynolds numbers Reg = 0–2547. High-speed photography was used to capture the droplet deformation process, whereas the numerical analysis was conducted using the volume of fluid (VOF) model. The numerical and theoretical predictions showed that the contribution of a carrier gas to the droplet spreading becomes significant only at high Weo and when the work done by pressure forces is greater than 10% of the kinetic energy. Theoretical predictions of the maximum spreading diameter agree reasonably well with the experimental and numerical observations.