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Liquid states in horizontal plate-inserted slits

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 May 2025

Dongwen Tan Open the ORCID record for Dongwen Tan [Opens in a new window] ,
Qi Zhang Open the ORCID record for Qi Zhang [Opens in a new window]  and
Xinping Zhou Open the ORCID record for Xinping Zhou [Opens in a new window]
Dongwen Tan
Affiliation:
School of Mechanical Science and Engineering, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430074, PR China
Qi Zhang
Affiliation:
School of Mechanical Science and Engineering, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430074, PR China
Xinping Zhou*
Affiliation:
School of Mechanical Science and Engineering, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430074, PR China State Key Laboratory of Intelligent Manufacturing Equipment and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430074, PR China
*
Corresponding author: Xinping Zhou, xpzhou08@hust.edu.cn
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Abstract

Removing liquid from a channel is an important process. In a horizontal slit in the presence of a downward gravity field, two distinct liquid states were commonly observed: gravity-driven liquid non-occlusion and liquid plug (Parry et al. 2012 Phys. Rev. Lett. 108, 246101). A wetting-driven non-occlusion at some contact angles was induced by insertion of a rod into a horizontal tube at an eccentric position (Tan et al. 2022 J. Fluid Mech. 946, A7). Insertion of a plate into a horizontal slit may enhance the capacity of removing liquid. This situation is theoretically investigated, and the theoretical results are mutually verified by a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) numerical method that is first employed to determine the critical non-occlusion conditions. Four types of liquid states are observed. The effects of contact angles, plate position and Bond number (measured by downward gravitational force relative to surface tension force) on different types of liquid states are analysed. This paper additionally provides a CFD numerical method for understanding the conditions for the stability and existence of the liquid plugs in complex situations (e.g. considering the effect of the sidewalls, or when a rod or plate is inserted into a circular, elliptical or polygonal tube) in the future.

JFM classification

Interfacial Flows (free surface): Capillary flows
Type
JFM Papers
Information
Journal of Fluid Mechanics , Volume 1012 , 10 June 2025 , A2
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Copyright
© The Author(s), 2025. Published by Cambridge University Press

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