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Direct numerical simulations of Leidenfrost drop impacting onto superheated liquid pool: an early stage study

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 March 2025

Shuo Zhao ,
Jie Zhang Open the ORCID record for Jie Zhang [Opens in a new window] ,
Chao Sun Open the ORCID record for Chao Sun [Opens in a new window]  and
Ming-Jiu Ni Open the ORCID record for Ming-Jiu Ni [Opens in a new window]
Shuo Zhao
Affiliation:
School of Engineering Science, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 101408, PR China
Jie Zhang*
Affiliation:
State Key Laboratory for Strength and Vibration of Mechanical Structures, School of Aerospace, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an, Shaanxi 710049, PR China
Chao Sun
Affiliation:
Center for Combustion Energy, Key Laboratory for Thermal Science and Power Engineering of Ministry of Education, Department of Energy and Power Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, PR China
Ming-Jiu Ni*
Affiliation:
School of Engineering Science, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 101408, PR China State Key Laboratory for Strength and Vibration of Mechanical Structures, School of Aerospace, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an, Shaanxi 710049, PR China
*
Corresponding authors: Jie Zhang, j_zhang@xjtu.edu.cn; Ming-Jiu Ni, mjni@ucas.as.cn
Corresponding authors: Jie Zhang, j_zhang@xjtu.edu.cn; Ming-Jiu Ni, mjni@ucas.as.cn
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Abstract

When a droplet impacts onto a superheated liquid pool, vapour generation and drainage within the gas cushion play a crucial role in postponing or even preventing contact between the droplet and the pool surface. Through direct numerical simulations, we closely examine the transient dynamics of vapour flow confined within the thin film, with a particular focus on the minimum thickness of this film under a range of impact conditions. Our numerical findings manifest the significant influence of evaporation on the vertical motion of the liquid–vapour interface, revealing how the minimum film thickness evolves in response to variations in impact velocity and degree of superheat. In our numerical simulations, we have identified two distinct evolution laws for the minimum film thickness, corresponding to moderate and high superheat regimes, respectively. These regimes are differentiated by the dominance of evaporation effects within the vapour film during the early falling stage. Subsequently, we establish scaling relations to characterize these regimes by carefully balancing inertial, pressure and evaporation effects within the thin vapour film. Furthermore, we observe that the vapour pressure eventually reaches equilibrium with the rapid increase in capillary pressure at the spreading front, thereby controlling the minimum thickness of the vapour layer in both moderate and high superheat regimes. We derive self-similar solutions based on this equilibrium, and the predicted minimum film thickness aligns remarkably well with our numerical results. This provides compelling evidence that evaporation alone is insufficient to prevent droplet–pool coalescence.

JFM classification

Drops and Bubbles: Drops Phase change: Condensation/evaporation
Type
JFM Papers
Information
Journal of Fluid Mechanics , Volume 1007 , 25 March 2025 , A13
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Copyright
© The Author(s), 2025. Published by Cambridge University Press

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