Franck Pigeonneau

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

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...

Low-Reynolds-number gravity-driven migration and deformation of bubbles near a free surface

We investigate numerically the axisymmetric migration of bubbles toward a free surface, using a boundary-integral technique. Our careful numerical implementation allows to study the bubble(s) deformation and film drainage; it is benchmarked against several tests. The rise of one bubble toward a free surface is studied and the computed bubble shape compared with the results of Princen [J. Colloid Interface Sci. 18, 178 (1963)]. The liquid film between the bubble and the free surface is found to drain exponentially in time in full agreement with the experimental work of Debregeas et al. [Science 279, 1704 (1998)]. Our numerical results also cast some light on the role played by the deformation of the fluid interfaces and it turns out that for weakly deformed interfaces (high surface tension or a tiny bubble) the film drainage is faster than for a large fluid deformation. By introducing one or two additional bubble(s) below the first one, we examine to which extent the previous trends are affected by bubble-...

Intermittent flow in yield-stress fluids slows down chaotic mixing

We present experimental results of chaotic mixing of Newtonian fluids and yield-stress fluids using a rod-stirring protocol with a rotating vessel. We show how the mixing of yield-stress fluids by chaotic advection is reduced compared to the mixing of Newtonian fluids and explain our results, bringing to light the relevant mechanisms: the presence of fluid that only flows intermittently, a phenomenon enhanced by the yield stress, and the importance of the peripheral region. This finding is confirmed via numerical simulations. Anomalously slow mixing is observed when the synchronization of different stirring elements leads to the repetition of slow stretching for the same fluid particles.

Slow viscous gravity-driven interaction between a bubble and a free surface with unequal surface tensions

The axisymmetric gravity-driven dynamics of a bubble rising toward a free surface is addressed for gas-liquid interfaces having unequal surface tensions. The liquid flow is governed by the Stokes equations which are here solved using a boundary element method in axisymmetric configuration. Within this framework, two dimensionless numbers arise: the Bond number Bo1 based on the surface tension of the bubble interface and the surface tension ratio ˆ γ comparing the free surface and bubble surface tensions. Under a careful and discussed selection of the code key settings (number of boundary elements, initial bubble location, and distance beyond which the free surface is truncated), it has been possible to numerically and accurately track in time the bubble and free surface shapes for several values of (Bo1, ˆ γ). The long-time shapes are found to deeply depend upon both Bo1 and ˆ γ and also to compare well with the shapes predicted in Princen and Mason [“Shape of a fluid drop at a fluid-liquid interface. II. Theory for three-phase systems,” J. Colloid. Sci. 20, 246–266 (1965)] using a hydrostatic model in which both surfaces are touching. Similarly, the drainage dynamics of the liquid film thickness between the bubble and the free surface depends on (Bo1, ˆ γ). The long-time film thickness exponentially decays in time and a so-called thinning rate α for which the numerical behaviors and a simple model reveal two basic behaviors: (i) at small Bond number, α behaves as 1/Bo1 and (ii) at large Bond number, α is nearly constant. In addition, it is found that in the entire range of the quantity χ = (1 + ˆ γ)Bo1/(2 ˆ γ), the thinning rate α is well approximated by the function 1/(18 χ) + α∞ with α∞ ≈ 0.158. Such a result also permits one to estimate the typical drainage time versus the initial bubble radius a, the liquid density ρ and viscosity μ, the gravity and the free surface, and bubble surface tensions.

Low-Reynolds-number rising of a bubble near a free surface at vanishing Bond number

This work considers a nearly spherical bubble and a nearly flat free surface interacting under buoyancy at vanishing Bond number Bo. For each perturbed surface, the deviation from the unperturbed shape is asymptotically obtained at leading order on Bo. The task appeals to the normal traction exerted on the unperturbed surface by the Stokes flow due to a spherical bubble translating toward a flat free surface. The free surface problem is then found to be well-posed and to admit a solution in closed form when gravity is still present in the linear differential equation governing the perturbed profile through a term proportional to Bo. In contrast, the bubble problem amazingly turns out to be over-determined. It however becomes well-posed if the requirement of horizontal tangent planes at the perturbed bubble north and south poles is discarded or if the term proportional to Bo is omitted. Both previous approaches turn out to predict for a small Bond number, quite close solutions except in the very vicinity o...