Research Projects

The drop impact process is crucial in various industrial applications and natural phenomena. This research aims to address inconclusive investigations on the subject, focusing on identifying the transition boundary between bouncing, spreading, and splashing. Two types of splashes during the drop impact are prompt splash and corona splash. Researchers have observed that reducing surrounding pressure can suppress splashing, but no unified explanation has been found. The outcome of the drop impact process depends on the relative magnitude of inertial, viscous, and capillary forces, as well as the wettability and roughness of the solid surface, surrounding pressure, and physical properties of the surrounding fluid. Identifying the transition boundary is challenging due to the large parameter space involved. Using improved imaging and accurate direct numerical simulation, the researchers will try to find the governing parameters that dominate the flow. Scaling laws will be derived based on the dominant balance to elucidate the flow physics. Both experimental and numerical tools will be used to perform the investigation. This research will provide insights into the complex physics of drop impact events, leading to advancements in fundamental understanding. It will also bring value to several industrial applications, such as fuel atomization, spray coating and painting, ink-jet printing, 3D printing in microfabrication, and fabrication of self-cleaning surfaces. Understanding the transition regimes is essential for flow optimization in these applications. Additionally, this research will help understand important natural phenomena like foliar outbreaks by splash dispersal and prevent disease transmission.