Physics – Condensed Matter – Soft Condensed Matter
Scientific paper
2006-04-09
Langmuir vol 22, 8860 (2006).
Physics
Condensed Matter
Soft Condensed Matter
4 pages, 4 figures
Scientific paper
We consider theoretically liquid rise against gravity in capillaries with height-dependent cross-section. For a conical capillary made from a hydrophobic surface and dipped in a liquid reservoir, the equilibrium liquid height depends on the cone opening angle $\alpha$, the Young-Dupr\'{e} contact angle $\theta$, the cone radius at the reservoir's level $R_0$ and the capillary length $\kappa^{-1}$. As $\alpha$ is increased from zero, the meniscus' position changes continuously until, when $\alpha$ attains a critical value, the meniscus jumps to the bottom of the capillary. For hydrophilic surfaces the meniscus jumps to the top. The same liquid height discontinuuity can be achieved with electrowetting with no mechanical motion. Essentially the same behavior is found for two tilted surfaces. We further consider capillaries with periodic radius modulations, and find that there are few competing minima for the meniscus location. A transition from one to another can be performed by the use of electrowetting. The phenomenon discussed here may find uses in microfluidic applications requiring the transport small amounts of water ``quanta'' (volume$<1$ nL) in a regular fashion.
No associations
LandOfFree
Discontinuous liquid rise in capillaries with nonuniform cross-sections does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this scientific paper.
If you have personal experience with Discontinuous liquid rise in capillaries with nonuniform cross-sections, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Discontinuous liquid rise in capillaries with nonuniform cross-sections will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFWR-SCP-O-267871