Lattice Boltzmann simulations of stochastic thin film dewetting.

We study numerically the effect of thermal fluctuations and of variable fluid-substrate interactions on the spontaneous dewetting of thin liquid films. To this aim, we use a recently developed lattice Boltzmann method for thin liquid film flows, equipped with a properly devised stochastic term. While it is known that thermal fluctuations yield shorter rupture times, we show that this is a general feature of hydrophilic substrates, irrespective of the contact angle θ. The ratio between deterministic and stochastic rupture times, though, decreases with θ. Finally, we discuss the case of fluctuating thin film dewetting on chemically patterned substrates and its dependence on the form of the wettability gradients.

Lattice Boltzmann method for thin-liquid-film hydrodynamics.

We propose an approach to the numerical simulation of thin-film flows based on the lattice Boltzmann method. We outline the basic features of the method, show in which limits the expected thin-film equations are recovered, and perform validation tests. The numerical scheme is applied to the viscous Rayleigh-Taylor instability of a thin film and to the spreading of a sessile drop toward its equilibrium contact angle configuration. We show that the Cox-Voinov law is satisfied and that the effect of a tunable slip length on the substrate is correctly captured. We address, then, the problem of a droplet sliding on an inclined plane, finding that the Capillary number scales linearly with the Bond number, in agreement with experimental results. At last, we demonstrate the ability of the method to handle heterogenous and complex systems by showcasing the controlled dewetting of a thin film on a chemically structured substrate.

[Characteristics of the latent period of sensorimotor reactions in middle-aged and elderly outpatients with asthma during long-term treatment with inhaled glucocorticosteroids].

AIM: To study a relationship of the characteristics of simple and complex visual sensorimotor reactions to asthma controllability in middle-aged and elderly outpatients during disease-modifying antirheumatic drug therapy with beclomethasone, fluticasone, or budesonide in average and high daily doses. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Eighty middle-aged and elderly patients with asthma were examined. The level of asthma control, the main parameters of external respiratory function, and the characteristics of simple and complex visual sensorimotor reactions were assessed. RESULTS: Uncontrolled asthma was observed in more than 50% of the asthmatic patients in the outpatient setting. Moderate linear relationships were found between the main physiological parameters and the level of the standard asthma control test. CONCLUSION: In the patients with controlled asthma, the latent periods of simple and complex visual sensorimotor reactions were significantly shorter than in those with poorly controlled asthma.