Contact line dynamics in drop coalescence and spreading

The dynamics of coalescence of two water sessile drops is investigated and compared with the spreading dynamics of a single drop in partially wetting regime. The composite drop formed due to coalescence relaxes exponentially toward equilibrium with a typical relaxation time that decreases with contact angle. The relaxation time can reach a few tenths of seconds and depends also on the drop size, initial conditions, and surface properties (contact angle, roughness). The relaxation dynamics is larger by 5 to 6 orders of magnitude than the bulk hydrodynamics predicts, due to the high dissipation in the contact line vicinity. The coalescence is initiated at a contact of the drops growing in a condensation chamber or by depositing a small drop at the top of neighboring drops with a syringe, a method also used for the studies of the spreading. The dynamics is systematically faster by an order of magnitude when comparing the syringe deposition with condensation. We explain this faster dynamics by the influence of the unavoidable drop oscillations observed with fast camera filming. Right after the syringe deposition, the drop is vigorously excited by deformation modes, favoring the contact line motion. This excitation is also observed in spreading experiments while it is absent during the condensation-induced coalescence.     

Growth dynamics of water drops on a square-pattern rough hydrophobic surface

Condensation on rough or superhydrophobic substrates can induce wetting behavior that is quite different from that of deposited or impinging drops. We investigate the growth dynamics of water drops in a well-controlled condensation chamber on a model rough hydrophobic surface made of square pillars. After having followed growth laws similar to those observed on flat surfaces, a transition to an air-pocket-like state occurred because of the bridging of the drops between the pillars. Another transition to the more stable Wenzel state is later ensured by a noticeable pillar self-drying process. Condensation ends up in a few large drops in a mixed Wenzel penetration regime. The drops are fed by neighboring channels and the adjacent pillars stay almost dry, a remarkable and seemingly general property of rough hydrophobic substrates.     

Nucleation and growth on a superhydrophobic grooved surface

The growth dynamics of water drops condensed on a superhydrophobic geometrically patterned surface were studied. Drop size evolution at early and intermediate times is self-similar. Drop growth laws do not differ for a flat surface because of a reduction of both drop and substrate dimensionality. A striking observation is the instantaneous drying of the top surface of grooves at a point in time due to coalescence of the drops with a completely filled channel. At late times, only a few large drops grow connected to the channels, in a mixed Wenzel-penetration regime.     

Difference in the dynamic scaling behavior of droplet size distribution for coalescence under pulsed and continuous vapor delivery

Dynamic scaling behavior of the droplet size distribution in the coalescence regime for growth by pulsed laser deposition is studied experimentally and by computer simulation, and the same is compared with that for continuous vapor deposition. The scaling exponent for pulsed deposition is found to be (1.2 +/- 0.1), which is significantly lower as compared to that for continuous deposition (1.6 +/- 0.1). Simulations reveal that this dramatic difference can be traced to the large fraction of multiple droplet coalescence under pulsed vapor delivery. A possible role of the differing diffusion fields in the two cases is also suggested.     

A smooth rearrangement of N-p-toluenesulfonyl 2-tert-butyldiphenylsilylmethyl-substituted azetidines into N-p-toluenesulfonyl 3-tert-butyldiphenylsilyl-substituted pyrrolidines

The rearrangement of N-p-toluenesulfonyl 2-tert-butyldiphenylsilylmethyl-substituted azetidines into 3-tert-butyldiphenylsilyl-substituted pyrrolidines under Lewis acid conditions in dichloromethane involves 1,2-migration of silicon through a siliranium ion. The formation of siliranium ion was discovered not to be in concert with σ(C-N) cleavage from stereochemical analysis of the pyrrolidine products formed from 3- and 4-substituted-2-tert-butyldiphenylsilylmethyl azetidines and also from the optical rotation data and chiral HPLC analysis of the pyrrolidine product formed from N-p-toluenesulfonyl 2(R)-tert-butyldiphenylsilylmethyl azetidine. The formation of sterically less hindered siliranium ion is followed by its S(N)2 opening by the internal nitrogen nucleophile. Oxidative cleavage of σ(C-Si) bond leads to the formation of 3-hydroxypyrrolidines.     

Contact line dynamics in the late-stage coalescence of diethylene glycol drops

We investigated the contact line dynamics of a composite drop formed as a result of the coalescence during the condensation of two diethylene glycol (DEG) drops at -4 degrees C on a silicon surface. The composite drop relaxes exponentially toward equilibrium with a typical relaxation time, tc, which depends on the equilibrium radius, R, of the composite drop. The value of tc is found to be in the range of 10-100 s for R approximately 1-4 microm. The relaxation dynamics is found to be larger by 6 orders of magnitude than that predicted by bulk hydrodynamics because of high dissipation in the contact line vicinity. Similar to low viscous liquids (water), this high dissipation can be attributed to an Arrhenius factor resulting from the phase change in the contact line vicinity and to the influence of surface defects that pin the contact line.     

Water condensation on zinc surfaces treated by chemical bath deposition

Water condensation, a complex and challenging process, is investigated on a metallic (Zn) surface, regularly used as anticorrosive surface. The Zn surface is coated with hydroxide zinc carbonate by chemical bath deposition, a very simple, low-cost and easily applicable process. As the deposition time increases, the surface roughness augments and the contact angle with water can be varied from 75° to 150°, corresponding to changing the surface properties from hydrophobic to ultrahydrophobic and superhydrophobic. During the condensation process, the droplet growth laws and surface coverage are found similar to what is found on smooth surfaces, with a transition from Cassie-Baxter to Wenzel wetting states at long times. In particular, it is noticeable in view of corrosion effects that the water surface coverage remains on order of 55%.