Simultaneous Effect of Droplet Temperature and Surface Wettability on Single Drop Impact Dynamics

In this paper, the influence of the liquid droplet temperature on thermo–hydrodynamics of a single droplet impinging on surfaces having different hydrophobicities is experimentally investigated. Variation in the liquid temperature typically results in alteration of properties such as the density, the viscosity, the surface tension, and the enthalpy, consequently, the droplet dynamics gets to be modified. Employing high-speed imaging technique, the morphology and spreading pattern are investigated for water droplet collision on hydrophilic, hydrophobic and super-hydrophobic surfaces. The droplet deformation is monitored qualitatively and quantitatively for drops in the temperature range from 5 to 85°C and the Weber number between 14.5 and 160. It is observed that with an increase in the liquid temperature the spreading factor increases owing to the combined effect of reduction in the density, the surface tension, the viscosity and the contact angle of the solid surface. The differences in extension of droplets under the extreme temperatures for hydrophilic, hydrophobic and super-hydrophobic surfaces are noted to be 62.7, 27.76, and 20.52%, respectively. At the low temperature, the surface tension force dominates and the Cassie–Baxter state prevails on a textured super-hydrophobic surface and the droplets bounce off. In contrast at elevated temperatures, the liquid–solid interface ruptures and liquid penetrates into the cavities and results in the Wenzel state. Furthermore, the drop which exhibits multiple bounces in the low temperature regime is found sticking on a super-hydrophobic substrate at the high droplet temperature irrespective of the Weber number.