What is the shape of an air bubble on a liquid surface?

Miguel A. C. Teixeira, Steve Arscott, Simon J. Cox, Paulo Ivo C. Teixeira

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

22 Citations (Scopus)
195 Downloads (Pure)

Abstract

We have calculated the equilibrium shape of the axially symmetric meniscus along which a spherical bubble contacts a flat liquid surface by analytically integrating the Young–Laplace equation in the presence of gravity, in the limit of large Bond numbers. This method has the advantage that it provides semianalytical expressions for key geometrical properties of the bubble in terms of the Bond number. Results are in good overall agreement with experimental data and are consistent with fully numerical (Surface Evolver) calculations. In particular, we are able to describe how the bubble shape changes from hemispherical, with a flat, shallow bottom, to lenticular, with a deeper, curved bottom, as the Bond number is decreased.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)13708-13717
Number of pages10
JournalLangmuir
Volume31
Issue number51
Early online date25 Nov 2015
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 30 Nov 2015

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