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  • Open Access

Mass diffusion and bending in dynamic wetting by phase-field and sharp-interface models

Tomas Fullana1,2, Stéphane Zaleski1,3, and Gustav Amberg4,*

  • *Contact author: gustava@kth.se
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Phys. Rev. E 112, 045108 – Published 21 October, 2025

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/xmj5-dbgp

Abstract

Dynamic wetting poses a well-known challenge in classical sharp-interface formulation as the no-slip wall condition leads to a contact line singularity that is typically regularized with a Navier boundary condition, often requiring empirical fitting for the slip length. On the other hand, this paradox does not appear in phase-field models as the contact line moves through diffusive mass transport. In this work, we present a toy model that accounts for mass diffusion at the contact line within a sharp-interface framework. This model is based on a theoretical relation derived from the Cahn-Hilliard equations, which links the total diffusive mass transport to the curvature at the wall. From an estimate of the chemical potential on a curved interface, we obtain an expression for the width of the highly curved region δ and the apparent angle. In the sharp-interface model, we then introduce a fictitious boundary, displaced by a distance δ into the domain, where a Navier boundary condition is applied along a dynamic apparent contact angle that accounts for the local interface bending. The robustness of the model is assessed by comparing the toy model results with standard phase-field ones on two cases: the steady state profiles of a liquid bridge between two plates moving in opposite directions and the transient behaviors of a drop spreading on a solid with a prescribed equilibrium angle. This offers a practical and efficient alternative to solve contact line problems at lower cost in a sharp-interface framework with input parameters from phase-field models.

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Phys. Rev. E 112, 045108– Published 21 October, 2025
  • Received 16 April 2025
  • Accepted 21 August 2025
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Published by the American Physical Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. Further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the published article's title, journal citation, and DOI. Funded by Bibsam.

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