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Time-dependent motion of a confined bubble in a tube: transition between two steady states

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 October 2018

Yingxian Estella Yu
Affiliation:
Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
Lailai Zhu
Affiliation:
Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA Linné Flow Centre and Swedish e-Science Research Centre (SeRC), KTH Mechanics, SE 10044 Stockholm, Sweden
Suin Shim
Affiliation:
Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
Jens Eggers*
Affiliation:
School of Mathematics, University of Bristol, University Walk, Bristol BS8 1TW, UK
Howard A. Stone*
Affiliation:
Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
*
Email addresses for correspondence: jens.eggers@bris.ac.uk, hastone@princeton.edu
Email addresses for correspondence: jens.eggers@bris.ac.uk, hastone@princeton.edu

Abstract

When a confined bubble translates steadily in a cylindrical capillary tube, without the consideration of gravity effects, a uniform thin film of liquid separates the bubble surface and the tube wall. In this work, we investigate how this steady state is established by considering the transitional motion of the bubble as it adjusts its film thickness profile between two steady states, characterized by two different bubble speeds. During the transition, two uniform film regions coexist, separated by a step-like transitional region. The transitional motion also requires modification of the film solution near the rear of the bubble, which depends on the ratio of the two capillary numbers. These theoretical results are verified by experiments and numerical simulations.

Type
JFM Rapids
Copyright
© 2018 Cambridge University Press 

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