VISUALIZATION AND SIMULATION OF SPARK BUBBLE DROPLET GENERATION

The production of mono-sized liquid droplets is a key element of many industrial processes. In the present study, spark bubble-induced droplet formation through a circular hole in a solid surface separating the liquid and air interface is investigated both numerically and experimentally. The bubble is initiated using the electrical discharge technique. A high-speed video camera capable of obtaining images at a frame rate of 15,000 fps is utilized to visualize the bubble and droplet formation process. Numerical simulations are performed using boundary element method. A comparison is made between the numerical and experimental results where, a reasonable agreement is found. The outstanding features of the new mechanism are the generation of droplets much smaller than the nozzle opening size and under certain conditions free of satellite droplets.

Droplet Generation