EAGER: Dewetting dynamics at liquid/air interfaces

油水系统是常见的，并形成了许多工业过程的基础，如制药、食品、化妆品、农用化学品和纳米材料。并不是所有的油和水之间的相互作用都是有益的，特别是在海洋漏油的情况下。尽管最近的调查已经探究了石油泄漏的不同方面，但仍有几个问题没有得到解答。例如，油滴撞击海洋表面最终扩散形成薄膜的过程尚不清楚。本项目将采用实验和数学模型相结合的方法详细阐述这一过程。拟议中的研究具有变革性，因为它有可能探索溢油扩散的新途径，并将揭示在很大程度上被忽视的相关过程。通过提供全面的实验数据和经过验证的理论框架，可以为更好的遏制策略提供信息，从而扩大对石油泄漏的理解。所获得的知识可以应用于其他油/水系统，如分离/萃取柱或薄膜。该项目的研究结果将通过外展计划和在国家和国际会议上的演讲来传播。油滴在液气界面脱湿事件的后果将在很大程度上取决于这些油的化学性质、散装液体性质以及这些油滴中颗粒的存在。因此，研究将使用模拟粘土颗粒，辅助目标是设计一种阻止扩散的方法。在脱湿事件发生后，本研究将研究微颗粒存在和不存在情况下油的扩散行为，并将这种行为以无量纲分组的形式进行量化，从而对油的扩散行为进行预测分类。从这项调查中收集的数据也应该有助于开发更准确的液滴大小分布模型。研究将涉及到不同的领域，如薄膜/液滴的界面流体科学和胶体的合成。通过微粒控制脱湿的可能性也可能导致配方皮克林乳剂的方法，然后可以在许多学科中找到新的用途。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Oil-water systems are commonplace and form the basis of numerous processes in industries such as pharmaceuticals, food, cosmetics, agrochemicals, and nanomaterials. Not all interactions between oil and water are beneficial, especially in situations such as oil spills in oceans. Although recent investigations have probed different facets of oil spillages, several questions remain unanswered. As an example, the process by which oil droplets impacting on the ocean surface eventually spread to form thin films is not well understood. This project will elucidate this process in detail using a combination of experiments and mathematical models. The proposed research is transformative as it has the potential to probe new pathways for oil spill proliferation, and it will shed light on involved processes that have been largely overlooked. The results should expand the understanding on oil spills by providing a comprehensive experimental data and a validated theoretical framework that can inform better containment strategies. The knowledge gained can be applied to other oil/water systems such as separation/extraction columns or thin films. The project's findings will be disseminated through outreach programs and presentations at national and international conferences. The aftermaths of a dewetting event at liquid-air interface by an oil droplet will strongly depend upon the chemical properties of these oils, the bulk liquid properties, and the presence of particles within these oil drops. Consequently, the research will use simulant clay particles with the auxiliary objective of devising a method to arrest the spreading. Post a dewetting event, the research will study the spreading behavior of oils in absence and presence of microparticles and such behavior will be quantified in the form of dimensionless groups to classify the predict behavior of the spreading oil. The data collected from this investigation should also help develop more accurate drop size distribution models. The investigation will touch upon diverse fields such as interfacial fluid science of thin liquid film/drops and synthesis of colloids. The possible control of dewetting by microparticles could also lead to methods for formulating Pickering emulsions which could then find novel uses within many disciplines.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.