Bridging of liquid drops at chemically structured walls
File(s)three_stripes-3.pdf (423.05 KB)
Accepted version
Author(s)
Malijevsky, Alexandr
Parry, Andrew O
Pospisil, Martin
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
Using mesoscopic interfacial models and microscopic density functional theory we study fluid ad-sorption at a dry wall decorated with three completely wet stripes of widthLseparated by distancesD1andD2. The stripes interact with the fluid with long-range forces inducing a large finite-sizecontribution to the surface free-energy. We show that this non-extensive free-energy contributionscales with lnLand drives different types of bridging transition corresponding to the merging ofliquid drops adsorbed at neighbouring wetting stripes when the separation between them ismolecu-larlysmall. We determine the surface phase diagram and show that this exhibits two triple points,where isolated drops, double drops and triple drops coexist. For the symmetric case,D1=D2≡D,our results also confirm that the equilbrium droplet configuration always has the symmetry of thesubstrate corresponding to either three isolated drops whenDis large or a single triple drop whenDis small; however, symmetry broken configurations do occur in a metastable part of the phasediagram which lies very close to the equilibrium bridging phase boundary. Implications for phasetransitions on other types of patterned surface are considered.
Date Issued
2019-04-30
Date Acceptance
2019-04-01
Citation
PHYSICAL REVIEW E, 2019, 99 (4)
ISSN
2470-0045
Publisher
AMER PHYSICAL SOC
Journal / Book Title
PHYSICAL REVIEW E
Volume
99
Issue
4
Copyright Statement
Copyright the authors
Sponsor
Engineering & Physical Science Research Council (EPSRC)
Identifier
http://gateway.webofknowledge.com/gateway/Gateway.cgi?GWVersion=2&SrcApp=PARTNER_APP&SrcAuth=LinksAMR&KeyUT=WOS:000466433800008&DestLinkType=FullRecord&DestApp=ALL_WOS&UsrCustomerID=1ba7043ffcc86c417c072aa74d649202
Grant Number
EP/L020564/1
Subjects
Science & Technology
Physical Sciences
Physics, Fluids & Plasmas
Physics, Mathematical
Physics
Publication Status
Published
Article Number
ARTN 042804