Simulations of inertial liquid-lens coalescence with the pseudopotential lattice Boltzmann method

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Xie, Qingguang, Harting, Jens
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
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author Xie, Qingguang
Harting, Jens
author_facet Xie, Qingguang
Harting, Jens
contents The coalescence of liquid lenses is relevant in various applications, including inkjet printing and fog harvesting. However, the dynamics of liquid-lens coalescence have been relatively underexplored, particularly in the case of liquid lenses with larger contact angles. We numerically investigate the coalescence of low-viscosity liquid lenses by means of the pseudopotential multi-component lattice Boltzmann method over a wide range of contact angles. In two-dimensional simulations, our numerical results on the growth of the bridge height are in quantitative agreement with experimental measurements for small contact angles. In addition, by comparing our simulation results with a theoretical approach based on the thin-sheet equations for liquid lenses, we find that the thin-sheet equations accurately capture the bridge-growth dynamics up to contact angles of approximately $θ< 40^{\circ}$. For the three-dimensional case, the growth of the bridge radius is independent of the equilibrium contact angle of the liquid lenses at the initial stage of growth. The dependency between the growth of the bridge height and the bridge radius exhibits a non-linear to linear transition.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2511_22398
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Simulations of inertial liquid-lens coalescence with the pseudopotential lattice Boltzmann method
Xie, Qingguang
Harting, Jens
Soft Condensed Matter
Fluid Dynamics
The coalescence of liquid lenses is relevant in various applications, including inkjet printing and fog harvesting. However, the dynamics of liquid-lens coalescence have been relatively underexplored, particularly in the case of liquid lenses with larger contact angles. We numerically investigate the coalescence of low-viscosity liquid lenses by means of the pseudopotential multi-component lattice Boltzmann method over a wide range of contact angles. In two-dimensional simulations, our numerical results on the growth of the bridge height are in quantitative agreement with experimental measurements for small contact angles. In addition, by comparing our simulation results with a theoretical approach based on the thin-sheet equations for liquid lenses, we find that the thin-sheet equations accurately capture the bridge-growth dynamics up to contact angles of approximately $θ< 40^{\circ}$. For the three-dimensional case, the growth of the bridge radius is independent of the equilibrium contact angle of the liquid lenses at the initial stage of growth. The dependency between the growth of the bridge height and the bridge radius exhibits a non-linear to linear transition.
title Simulations of inertial liquid-lens coalescence with the pseudopotential lattice Boltzmann method
topic Soft Condensed Matter
Fluid Dynamics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2511.22398