A confined liquid thread can form monodisperse droplets near the exit of a microchannel, provided the continuous phase is able to enter the microchannel. A general model that accurately predicts the droplet size including the breakup position inside the microchannel is presented and is verified with experimental observations; breakup occurs as long as the capillary number (Ca) of the liquid thread is below a critical capillary number (Ca); for cylindrical microchannels, it is derived that Ca = 1/16. Below Ca, the formed droplets at the exit of the microchannel have a diameter approximately two times the diameter of the liquid thread; around and above Ca, the liquid thread remains stable and the formed droplets grow infinitely large. The presented controlled droplet generation method is a useful tool for producing monodisperse emulsions and has great potential for the food and pharmaceutical industry.
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http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5618148 | PMC |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/acs.langmuir.7b01668 | DOI Listing |
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