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  • Letter
  • Open Access

Microfluidic droplet pinch-off modified by hard and soft colloids: A scaling transition

Loïc Chagot*, Simona Migliozzi, and Panagiota Angeli

  • *l.chagot@ucl.ac.uk
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Phys. Rev. Fluids 9, L052201 – Published 28 May, 2024

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevFluids.9.L052201

Abstract

This Letter explores the influence of colloids at liquid-liquid interfaces on droplet pinch-off dynamics in microfluidic devices, examining hard polystyrene particles and soft pNIPAM microgels. We uncover a significant deviation in droplet formation time compared to pure systems, similarly to surfactant-laden systems, yet notably, colloids exert minimal impact on droplet size, indicating potential nonlinear effects. The dynamics of neck thinning without colloids agree with the classic pendant drop scaling laws, while particle presence replaces traditional viscous and inertial-viscous regimes with a single power law, suggesting an elastic behavior driven by soft particle interactions.

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Outline

Information

Phys. Rev. Fluids 9, L052201– Published 28 May, 2024
  • Received 21 March 2024
  • Accepted 6 May 2024
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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.

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