Nicholas Feldmann
Research Mentor: Solomon Adera
Mentor Department: MechE, Engineering
Author(s): Nicholas Feldmann, Solomon Adera
Session: Session 2 (10:00 AM – 10:50 AM)
Presentation Type: Poster 57
Abstract
Understanding droplet impact dynamics has important implications in numerous engineering applications (for example, jet impingement cooling). While surface micro-structuring is known to influence splash patterns at high velocity drop impact, the predictive relationship between impact velocity, pillar arrangement, and the resulting bifurcation of parent droplet into sister droplets remains poorly understood. This study utilizes high-speed visualization to characterize the impact of a millimeter-size water droplet on well-defined micro-pillar array structures. The substrates used for this study are well-designed micropillars (20 µm height, 8 µm, diameter, 18µm pitch) arranged in a square pattern. By initially analyzing the droplet release from a height of 35 cm, this research maps the resulting satellite droplet velocities, radii, and angular deviations from the primary impact axis. This work aims to establish a predictive framework for satellite droplet formation based on the interplay between surface structure and inertial and surface tension forces. Thus, serving as a baseline for future expanded testing, which will investigate a broader range of impact velocities by varying release heights and examining different pillar geometries, such as inline versus staggered pillars.
