To jump or not to jump: Adhesion and viscous dissipation dictate the detachment of coalescing wall-attached bubbles

Fuente: arXiv
Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Demirkır, Çayan, Yang, Rui, Bashkatov, Aleksandr, Sanjay, Vatsal, Lohse, Detlef, Krug, Dominik
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
Subjects:
Online Access:
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1866908617611935744
author Demirkır, Çayan
Yang, Rui
Bashkatov, Aleksandr
Sanjay, Vatsal
Lohse, Detlef
Krug, Dominik
author_facet Demirkır, Çayan
Yang, Rui
Bashkatov, Aleksandr
Sanjay, Vatsal
Lohse, Detlef
Krug, Dominik
contents Bubble coalescence can promote bubble departure at much smaller sizes compared to buoyancy. This can critically enhance the efficiency of gas-evolving electrochemical processes, such as water electrolysis. In this study, we integrate high-speed imaging experiments and direct numerical simulations to dissect how and under which conditions bubble coalescence on surfaces leads to detachment. Our transparent electrode experiments provide new insights into contact line dynamics, demonstrating that the bubble neck generally does not contact the surface during coalescence. We reveal that whether coalescence leads to bubble departure or not is determined by the balance between surface energy, adhesion forces, and viscous dissipation. For the previously unexplored regime at low effective Ohnesorge number, a measure of viscosity that incorporates the effect of asymmetry between the coalescing bubbles, we identify a critical dimensionless adhesion energy threshold of $\approx$15% of the released surface energy, below which bubbles typically detach. We develop a global energy balance model that successfully predicts coalescence outcomes across diverse experimental conditions.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2501_05532
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle To jump or not to jump: Adhesion and viscous dissipation dictate the detachment of coalescing wall-attached bubbles
Demirkır, Çayan
Yang, Rui
Bashkatov, Aleksandr
Sanjay, Vatsal
Lohse, Detlef
Krug, Dominik
Fluid Dynamics
Chemical Physics
Bubble coalescence can promote bubble departure at much smaller sizes compared to buoyancy. This can critically enhance the efficiency of gas-evolving electrochemical processes, such as water electrolysis. In this study, we integrate high-speed imaging experiments and direct numerical simulations to dissect how and under which conditions bubble coalescence on surfaces leads to detachment. Our transparent electrode experiments provide new insights into contact line dynamics, demonstrating that the bubble neck generally does not contact the surface during coalescence. We reveal that whether coalescence leads to bubble departure or not is determined by the balance between surface energy, adhesion forces, and viscous dissipation. For the previously unexplored regime at low effective Ohnesorge number, a measure of viscosity that incorporates the effect of asymmetry between the coalescing bubbles, we identify a critical dimensionless adhesion energy threshold of $\approx$15% of the released surface energy, below which bubbles typically detach. We develop a global energy balance model that successfully predicts coalescence outcomes across diverse experimental conditions.
title To jump or not to jump: Adhesion and viscous dissipation dictate the detachment of coalescing wall-attached bubbles
topic Fluid Dynamics
Chemical Physics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2501.05532