ABSTRACT
A falling liquid drop, after impact on a rigid substrate, deforms and spreads, owing to the normal reaction force. Subsequently, if the substrate is nonwetting, the drop retracts and then jumps off. As we show here, not only is the impact itself associated with a distinct peak in the temporal evolution of the normal force, but also the jump-off, which was hitherto unknown. We characterize both peaks and elucidate how they relate to the different stages of the drop impact process. The time at which the second peak appears coincides with the formation of a Worthington jet, emerging through flow focusing. Even low-velocity impacts can lead to a surprisingly high second peak in the normal force, even larger than the first one, namely when the Worthington jet becomes singular due to the collapse of an air cavity in the drop.
ABSTRACT
Colliding drops are encountered in everyday technologies and natural processes, from combustion engines and commodity sprays to raindrops and cloud formation. The outcome of a collision depends on many factors, including the impact velocity and the degree of alignment, and intrinsic properties like surface tension. Yet, little is known on binary impact dynamics of low-surface-tension drops on a low-wetting surface. We investigate the dynamics of an oil drop impacting an identical sessile drop sitting on a superamphiphobic surface. We observe five rebound scenarios, four of which do not involve coalescence. We describe two previously unexplored cases for sessile drop liftoff, resulting from drop-on-drop impact. Numerical simulations quantitatively reproduce the rebound scenarios and enable quantification of velocity profiles, energy transfer, and viscous dissipation. Our results illustrate how varying the offset from head-on alignment and the impact velocity results in controllable rebound dynamics for oil drop collisions on superamphiphobic surfaces.
