Session B30: Instabilities and Turbulence

11:15 AM–2:15 PM, Monday, March 5, 2007
Colorado Convention Center - 304

Sponsoring Unit: DFD
Chair: Robert Ecke, Los Alamos National Laboratory

Abstract ID: BAPS.2007.MAR.B30.15

Abstract: B30.00015 : Spin dewetting of wetting and partially wetting fluids

2:03 PM–2:15 PM

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Authors:

  Shomeek Mukhopadhyay
    (Physics Department, Duke University )

  Robert Behringer
    (Physics Department, Duke University )

One of the classical results of fluid dynamics is the free-surface flow of a viscous liquid in a vertically rotating cylinder, where the free surface becomes a paraboloid. This solution neglects both viscosity and surface tension, and makes the unphysical prediction that the fluid height can become negative beyond a certain critical angular velocity (for a given fluid height). We perform experiments with completely wetting PDMS oil on silcon wafer, where beyond the critical angular velocity, the central region never dewets, but goes to a nominally flat state over long times. The dynamics of the transition to this final state depends on the angular speed and the initial radius of the dewetting region. There is a marked difference in the spin-up and spin-down dynamics. When the completely wetting liquid is replaced by a partially wetting liquid a dry central spot opens up, occasionally leaving a droplet trail. In both cases the contact line does not develop any azimuthal instabilities. Collaboration with Tom Witelski and Mihaela Froehlich.

To cite this abstract, use the following reference: http://meetings.aps.org/link/BAPS.2007.MAR.B30.15