Tunable self-emulsification via viscoelastic control of Marangoni-driven interfacial instabilities
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arXiv
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| Auteurs principaux: | , , |
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| Format: | Preprint |
| Publié: |
2025
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| _version_ | 1866913865736912896 |
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| author | Haessig, Christoph Habibi, Mehdi Sen, Uddalok |
| author_facet | Haessig, Christoph Habibi, Mehdi Sen, Uddalok |
| contents | Interfacial instabilities in multicomponent fluidic systems are widespread in nature and in industrial processes, yet controlling their dynamics remains a challenge. Here, we present a strategy to actively tune Marangoni-driven self-emulsification at liquid-liquid interfaces by harnessing fluid viscoelasticity. When a water-alcohol droplet spreads on an oil bath, a radial surface tension gradient induced by selective alcohol evaporation drives an interfacial instability, leading to the spontaneous formation of a dense two-dimensional array of "daughter" droplets. We demonstrate that introducing trace amounts of high-molecular-weight polymers, which introduces viscoelasticity, provides a robust means of controlling this process. Increasing viscoelasticity systematically suppresses the instability, resulting in a delayed onset of fragmentation and longer spreading fingers. By combining high-resolution experimental visualization and theoretical analysis, we uncover a quantitative relationship between the polymer concentration and the finger length prior to breakup. These findings establish a predictive framework for designing viscoelastic interfacial materials with programmable dynamic and offer new opportunities for surface-tension-mediated patterning, emulsification, and fluidic control in soft material systems. |
| format | Preprint |
| id |
arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2504_11021 |
| institution | arXiv |
| publishDate | 2025 |
| record_format | arxiv |
| spellingShingle | Tunable self-emulsification via viscoelastic control of Marangoni-driven interfacial instabilities Haessig, Christoph Habibi, Mehdi Sen, Uddalok Soft Condensed Matter Fluid Dynamics Interfacial instabilities in multicomponent fluidic systems are widespread in nature and in industrial processes, yet controlling their dynamics remains a challenge. Here, we present a strategy to actively tune Marangoni-driven self-emulsification at liquid-liquid interfaces by harnessing fluid viscoelasticity. When a water-alcohol droplet spreads on an oil bath, a radial surface tension gradient induced by selective alcohol evaporation drives an interfacial instability, leading to the spontaneous formation of a dense two-dimensional array of "daughter" droplets. We demonstrate that introducing trace amounts of high-molecular-weight polymers, which introduces viscoelasticity, provides a robust means of controlling this process. Increasing viscoelasticity systematically suppresses the instability, resulting in a delayed onset of fragmentation and longer spreading fingers. By combining high-resolution experimental visualization and theoretical analysis, we uncover a quantitative relationship between the polymer concentration and the finger length prior to breakup. These findings establish a predictive framework for designing viscoelastic interfacial materials with programmable dynamic and offer new opportunities for surface-tension-mediated patterning, emulsification, and fluidic control in soft material systems. |
| title | Tunable self-emulsification via viscoelastic control of Marangoni-driven interfacial instabilities |
| topic | Soft Condensed Matter Fluid Dynamics |
| url | https://arxiv.org/abs/2504.11021 |