On the capillary motion of arbitrary clusters of spherical bubbles. Part 1. General theory

• Published in: Journal of fluid mechanics Vol. 504; no. 504; pp. 391 - 401
• Main Author: SELLIER, A.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Cambridge, UK Cambridge University Press 10.04.2004; Cambridge University Press (CUP)
• Subjects: Ambient temperature; Bubbles; Engineering Sciences; Exact sciences and technology; Fluid dynamics; Fluid mechanics; Fluids mechanics; Fundamental areas of phenomenology (including applications); Laminar flows; Laminar flows in cavities; Laminar suspensions; Mechanics; Multiphase and particle-laden flows; Nonhomogeneous flows; Physics; Temperature gradients; Bubbles; Particle cluster; Two-phase flow; Theoretical study; Spherical particle; Particle suspension; Thermocapillarity; Stokes flow
• ISSN: 0022-1120; 1469-7645; 1469-7645
• DOI: 10.1017/S0022112004008146

A new and systematic approach is proposed to determine the migration of torque-free spherical bubbles immersed in a steady and non-uniform unbounded Stokes flow and subject to arbitrary capillary effects. The advocated procedure appeals to only a very few quantities on the surface of each bubble and is therefore suitable for a future numerical treatment of arbitrary clusters of bubbles. For a single bubble, the theory allows a straightforward analytical implementation and the predicted results agree well with Hetsroni & Haber (1970), Hetsroni et al. (1971) and Subramanian (1985). The thermocapillary motion of non-conducting spherical bubbles freely suspended in a quiescent liquid in the presence of an arbitrary ambient temperature $T_{\infty}$ is considered and it is shown that it is futile to determine the disturbed temperature field, whatever $T_{\infty},$ once bubbles are equivalent (i.e. experience the same velocity in a given uniform temperature gradient ${\bm \nabla}T_{\infty},$ as obtained by Acrivos et al. 1990 and Wang et al. 1994).