Impact of a viscous liquid drop

Robert D. Schroll, Christophe Josserand, Stéphane Zaleski, Wendy W. Zhang

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

We simulate the impact of a viscous liquid drop onto a smooth dry solid surface. As in experiments, when ambient air effects are negligible, impact flattens the falling drop without producing a splash. The no-slip boundary condition at the wall produces a boundary layer inside the liquid. Later, the flattening surface of the drop traces out the boundary layer. As a result, the eventual shape of the drop is a "pancake" of uniform thickness except at the rim, where surface tension effects are significant. The thickness of the pancake is simply the height where the drop surface first collides with the boundary layer.

Original languageEnglish
Article number034504
JournalPhysical Review Letters
Volume104
Issue number3
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 21 Jan 2010
Externally publishedYes

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