Florence Rouyer

Permeability of aqueous foams

We perform forced-drainage experiments in aqueous foams and compare the results with data available in the literature. We show that all the data can be accurately compared together if the dimensionless permeability of the foam is plotted as a function of liquid fraction. Using this set of coordinates highlights the fact that a large part of the published experimental results corresponds to relatively wet foams (

How coatings with hydrophobic particles may change the drying of water droplets: incompressible surface versus porous media effects

\varepsilon

Film drainage of viscous liquid on top of bare bubble: Influence of the Bond number

∼ 0.1 . Yet, most of the foam drainage models are based on geometrical considerations only valid for dry foams. We therefore discuss the range of validity of the different models in the literature and their comparison to experimental data. We propose extensions of these models considering the geometry of foam in the relatively wet-foam limit. We eventually show that if the foam geometry is correctly described, forced drainage experiments can be understood using a unique parameter --the Boussinesq number.

Permeability of a bubble assembly: From the very dry to the wet limit

There is no clear statement on the role of particles in the drying of liquid marbles, which are liquid drops coated with hydrophobic solid particles. While some works report a similar drying time for liquid marbles and bare water drops others observe a faster evaporation of either liquid marbles or of bare water drops. To provide insight into the subject, we report water drying experiments in different configurations. We first focus on the drying of flat water surfaces coated with a single or several layers of hydrophobic micronic particles. Quite surprisingly, surfaces coated with a single layer of densely packed particles dry at the same speed as the bare surfaces. However, when coated with several layers of particles, the drying rate per unit surface area is significantly diminished. This effect is quantitatively explained by considering vapor diffusion through the porous media formed by the stacking of micronic particles above the interface. Then, we consider the drying of curved interfaces which are liquid marbles, i.e. drops coated with one monolayer of micronic particles. Those systematically dry faster than pure drops of the same initial volume. As the presence of a single layer of particles does not significantly affect the drying rate, this “speed-up” effect is attributed to the conservation of the surface area of the coated drop during the drying. Our quantitative experiments and understanding of the drying of liquid marbles therefore support the different results found in the literature: liquid marbles coated with one monolayer of fine solid particles do dry faster than water drops, while those coated with several layers – that may be formed by aggregates of nanoparticles – experience slower drying.

Node contribution to the permeability of liquid foams

We present experimental results of film drainage on top of gas bubbles pushed by gravity towards the free surface of highly viscous Newtonian liquid with a uniform interface tension. The temporal evolution of the thickness of the film between a single bubble and the air/liquid interface is investigated via interference method. Experiments under various physical conditions (range of viscosities and surface tension of the liquid, and bubble sizes) evidence the influence of the deformation of the thin film on the thinning rate and confirm the slow down of film drainage with Bond number as previously reported by numerical work of Pigeonneau and Sellier [Phys. Fluids 23, 092102 (2011)]10.1063/1.3629815. Considering the liquid flow in the cap squeezed by buoyancy force of the bubble, we provide an approximation of thinning rate as a function of Bond number that agrees with experimental and numerical data. Qualitatively, the smaller the area of the thin film compare to the surface of the bubble, the faster the d...

Specific Surface Area Model for Foam Permeability

Bubble assemblies offer the remarkable property of adjusting their packing fraction over three orders of magnitude, thus providing an interesting system for the study of liquid flows through granular matter. Although significant work has been done in several fields of research, e.g., foams, porous media, and suspensions, a complete set of data over such a wide range of porosity e is still lacking. In this paper, we measure the permeability of a bubbly system in the range 0.1<e<0.8 and we connect these new data with a recently published set obtained for foams corresponding to e<0.2 [E. Lorenceau et al., Eur. Phys. J. E 28, 293 (2009)]. Moreover, measurements performed with two different surfactants, the so-called “mobile” and “nonmobile” interfaces, allow us to determine the influence of the bubbles’ surface mobility, which is proved to be a significant parameter up to e≈0.6, thus well above the bubbles packing fraction. Above e≈0.6, surface elasticity is fully mobilized over the bubbles’ surface and the b...

Recirculation model for liquid flow in foam channels

This paper deals with the drainage of liquid foams. The liquid velocity is known to be related to viscous dissipation occurring within the elements of the liquid network, i.e. the channels and the nodes. When compared together, available values for the hydrodynamic resistance of a foam node appear to span over more than one order of magnitude. To clarify this point, we propose an alternative experimental method to estimate the value of this parameter. In contrast to previous experimental work performed on the foam scale, the node resistance is not treated as a fitting parameter, but instead it is measured directly on the microscopic scale. The results allow a consistent range of values to emerge for this parameter.

Transport of coarse particles in liquid foams: coupling of confinement and buoyancy effects

Liquid foams were recognized early to be porous materials, as liquid flowed between the gas bubbles. Drainage theories have been established, and foam permeability has been modeled from the microscopic description of the equivalent pores geometry, emphasizing similarities with their solid counterparts. But to what extent can the theoretical work devoted to the permeability of solid porous materials be useful to liquid foams? In this article, the applicability of the Carman-Kozeny model on foam is investigated. We performed measurements of the permeability of foams with nonmobile surfactants, and we show that, in introducing an equivalent specific surface area for the foam, the model accurately describes the experimental data over two orders of magnitude for the foam liquid fraction, without any additional parameters. Finally, it is shown that this model includes the previous permeability models derived for foams in the dry foams limit.

Ripening of a draining foam bubble.

Although extensively studied in the past, drainage of aqueous foams still offers major unaddressed issues. Among them, the behaviour of foam films during drainage has great significance as the thickness of the films is known to control the Ostwald ripening in foams, which in turn impacts liquid drainage. We propose a model relating the films’ behavior to the liquid flow in foam channels. It is assumed that Marangoni-driven recirculation counterflows take place in the transitional region between the foam channel and the adjoining films, and the Gibbs elasticity is therefore introduced as a relevant parameter. The velocity of these counterflows is found to be proportional to the liquid velocity in the channel. The resulting channel permeability is determined and it is shown that Marangoni stresses do not contribute to rigidify the channel’s surfaces, in strong contrast with the drainage of horizontal thin liquid films. New experimental data are provided and support the proposed model.

Yield-stress fluids foams: flow patterns and controlled production in T-junction and flow-focusing devices

We investigate the behavior of coarse particles confined in foam channels during drainage. Results are reported for particle velocities measured at both microscopic (single foam channel) and macroscopic (foam) scales, as a function of the average velocity of the liquid flow and of the confinement parameter that is the ratio of particle diameter to the maximal particle diameter within channel cross-section. Thanks to numerical simulations, we show that velocities measured for small values of the confinement parameter cannot be understood with the commonly assumed theory for liquid flow in foam channels. Instead, better agreement is obtained by taking into account the characteristics of the flow in the films/channel transitional areas. Finally, values for longitudinal dispersion coefficients are reported, emphasizing effects of buoyancy on particles motions.