Bubbles in water are stabilised against coalescence by the addition of salt. The white froth in seawater but not in freshwater is an example of salt-stabilised bubbles. A range of experiments have been carried out to investigate this simple phenomenon, which is not yet understood.¶ The process of thin film drainage between two colliding bubbles relates to surface science fields including hydrodynamic flow, surface forces, and interfacial rheology. Bubble coalescence inhibition also stands alongside the better known Hofmeister series as an intriguing example of ion specificity: While some electrolytes inhibit coalescence at around 0.1M, others show no effect. The coalescence inhibition of any single electrolyte depends on the combination of cation and anion present, rather than on any single ion.¶ The surfactant-free inhibition of bubble coalescence has been studied in several systems for the first time, including aqueous mixed electrolyte solutions; solutions of biologically relevant non-electrolytes urea and sugars; and electrolyte solutions in nonaqueous solvents methanol, formamide, propylene carbonate and dimethylsulfoxide. Complementary experimental approaches include studies of terminal rise velocities of single bubbles showing that the gas-solution interface is mobile; and measurement of thin film drainage in inhibiting and non-inhibiting electrolyte solution, using the microinterferometric thin film balance technique.¶ The consolidation of these experimental approaches shows that inhibiting electrolytes act on the non-equilibrium dynamic processes of thin film drainage and rupture between bubble surfaces – and not via a change in surface forces, or by ion effects on solvent structure. In addition, inhibition is driven by osmotic effects related to solute concentration gradients, and ion charge is not important.¶ A new model is presented for electrolyte inhibition of bubble coalescence via changes to surface rheology. It is suggested that thin film stabilisation over a lifetime of seconds, is caused by damping of transient deformations of film surfaces on a sub-millisecond timescale. This reduction in surface deformability retards film drainage and delays film rupture. It is proposed that inhibiting electrolyte solutions show a dilational surface viscosity, which in turn is driven by interfacial concentration gradients. Inhibiting electrolytes have two ions that accumulate at the surface or two ions that are surface excluded, while non-inhibiting electrolytes have more evenly distributed interfacial solute. Bubble coalescence is for the first time linked through this ion surface partitioning, to the ion specificity observed at biological interfaces and the wider realm of Hofmeister effects.¶

No description available.

Foam fractionation is an economical and environmentally friendly separation method for surface active material using a rising column of foam. The system of foam fractionation column with reflux is selected since such a system can improve the enrichment of the product collected from the top of the column. Due to the reflux, it is assumed that there is more surface active material (surfactant and/or protein) in the Plateau border than that in the foam lamella, so that the Plateau border acts as a surfactant/protein reservoir. The aim of this thesis is to investigate the adsorption and transport of surface active material such as surfactant and/or protein onto the surface of a lamella in a foam fractionation column with reflux using mathematical simulation. There are two steps involved in adsorption of surface active material onto a bubble surface within foam, which are diffusion from the bulk solution into the subsurface, a layer next to the interface, followed by adsorption of that material from the subsurface onto the interface. The diffusion follows the Fick's second law, while the adsorption may follow the Henry, Langmuir or Frumkin isotherms, depending on the properties of the surface active material. The adsorption of mixed protein-surfactant follows the Frumkin isotherm. When there is a competition between protein and surfactant, the protein arrives onto the interface at a later time due to a slower diffusion rate and it displaces the surfactant molecules already on the surface since protein has a higher affinity for that surface than surfactant. The surfactant transport from a Plateau border onto a foam lamella is determined by the interaction of forces applied on the lamella surface, such as film drainage, due to the pressure gradient between the lamella and the Plateau border, the Marangoni effect, due to the gradient of surface tension, and surface viscosity, as a reaction to surface motion. In this thesis, there are two different models of film drainage. One approach uses assumption of a film with a mobile interface and the other model assumes a film with a rigid interface. In the absence of surface viscosity, the Marangoni effect dominates the film drainage resulting in accumulation of surfactant on the surface of the foam lamella in the case of a lamella with a rigid interface. In the case of a film with a mobile interface, the film drainage dominates the Marangoni effect and surfactant is washed away from the surface of the lamella. When the drainage is very fast, such as that which is achieved by a film with a mobile interface, the film could be predicted to attain the thickness of a common black film, well within the residence time in a foam fractionation column, at which point the film stops draining and surfactant starts to accumulate on the lamella surface. The desirable condition in operation of a foam fractionation column however is when the Marangoni effect dominates the film drainage and surfactant accumulates on the surface of a foam lamella such as the one achieved by a film with a rigid interface. In the presence of surface viscosity and the absence of film drainage, the surface viscous forces oppose the Marangoni effect and reduce the amount of surfactant transport onto the foam lamella. A larger surface viscosity results in less surfactant transport onto the foam lamella. In addition, the characteristic time scale required for surfactant transport is shorter with a shorter film length.

Studying the interactions of solid particles and deformable gas<br />bubbles in viscous liquids is very important in many applications,<br />especially in mining and chemical industries. These interactions<br />involve liquid-solid-air multiphase flows and an<br />arbitrary-Lagrangian-Eulerican (ALE) approach is used for the direct<br />numerical simulations. In the system of rigid particles and<br />deformable gas bubbles suspended in viscous liquids, the<br />Navier-Stokes equations coupled with the equations of motion of the<br />particles and deformable bubbles are solved in a finite-element<br />framework. A moving, unstructured, triangular mesh tracks the<br />deformation of the bubble and free surface with adaptive refinement.<br />In this dissertation, we study four problems. In the first three<br />problems the flow is assumed to be axisymmetric and two dimensional<br />(2D) in the fourth problem.<br /><br />Firstly, we study the interaction between a rising deformable bubble<br />and a solid wall in highly viscous liquids. The mechanism of the<br />bubble deformation as it interacts with the wall is described in<br />terms of two nondimensional groups, namely the Morton number (Mo)<br />and Bond number (Bo). The film drainage process is also<br />considered. It is found that three modes of bubble-rigid wall<br />interaction exist as Bo changes at a moderate Mo.<br />The first mode prevails at small Bo where the bubble deformation<br />is small. For this mode, the bubble is<br /> hard to break up and will bounce back and eventually attach<br />to the rigid wall. In the second mode, the bubble may break up after<br />it collides with the rigid wall, which is determined by the film<br />drainage. In the third mode, which prevails at high Bo, the bubble<br />breaks up due to the bottom surface catches up the top surface<br />during the interaction.<br /><br />Secondly, we simulate the interaction between a rigid particle and a<br />free surface. In order to isolate the effects of viscous drag and<br />particle inertia, the gravitational force is neglected and the<br />particle gains its impact velocity by an external accelerating<br />force. The process of a rigid particle impacting a free surface and<br />then rebounding is simulated. Simplified theoretical models are<br />provided to illustrate the relationship between the particle<br />velocity and the time variation of film thickness between the<br />particle and free surface. Two film thicknesses are defined. The<br />first is the thickness achieved when the particle reaches its<br />highest position. The second is the thickness when the particle<br />falls to its lowest position. The smaller of these two thicknesses<br />is termed the minimum film thickness and its variation with the<br />impact velocity has been determined. We find that the interactions<br />between the free surface and rigid particle can be divided into<br />three regimes according to the trend of the first film thickness.<br />The three regimes are viscous regime, inertial regime and jetting<br />regime. In viscous regime, the first film thickness decreases as the<br />impact velocity increases. Then it rises slightly in the inertial<br />regime because the effect of liquid inertia becomes larger as the<br />impact velocity increases. Finally, the film thickness decreases<br />again due to Plateau-Rayleigh instability in the jetting regime.<br />We also find that the minimum film thickness corresponds to an<br />impact velocity on the demarcation point between the viscous and<br />inertial regimes. This fact is caused by the balance of viscous<br />drag, surface deformation and liquid inertia.<br /><br />Thirdly, we consider the interaction between a rigid particle and a<br />deformable bubble. Two typical cases are simulated: (1) Collision of<br />a rigid particle with a gas bubble in water in the absence of<br />gravity, and (2) Collision of a buoyancy-driven rising bubble with a<br />falling particle in highly viscous liquids. We also compare our<br />simulation results with available experimental data. Good agreement<br />is obtained for the force on the particle and the shape of the<br />bubble.<br /><br />Finally, we investigated the collisions of groups of bubbles and<br />particles in two dimensions. A preliminary example of the oblique<br />collision between a single particle and a single bubble is conducted<br />by giving the particle a constant acceleration. Then, to investigate<br />the possibility of particles attaching to bubbles, the interactions<br />between a group of 22 particles and rising bubbles are studied. Due<br />to the fluid motion, the particles involved in central collisions<br />with bubbles have higher possibilities to attach to the bubble. / Ph. D.

Les interactions entre des gouttes ou des bulles sont rencontrées dans de nombreuses applications industrielles et/ou environnementales. Ici, nous nous intéressons à l’électro-coalescence qui a des applications importantes comme par exemple la séparation eau/pétrole (coalescence de gouttelettes d'eau dans du pétrole). L’étude a été consacrée à l’élaboration et à la mise point de modèles basés sur les équations de Navier-Stokes et les équations régissant les champs électriques au niveau d’une seule goutte ainsi que l’interaction entre deux gouttes et plus particulièrement l’effet des forces hydrodynamiques et électrostatiques sur le mécanisme d’amincissement du film séparant les deux gouttes. Selon les cas traités, le suivi de l’interface est réalisé soit à l’aide de la méthode LS (Level Set) ou bien à l’aide de la méthode MM (Moving Mesh). Les solutions numériques ont été obtenues à l’aide du code de calcul COMSOL Multiphysics. Dans une première étape, nous avons analysé l’effet d’un champ électrique sur la déformation d’une seule goutte suspendue dans un autre fluide visqueux, pour différentes propriétés physiques et électriques des deux fluides. Le modèle a été testé et validé par confrontation avec les solutions analytiques existantes et avec des études numériques de la littérature. Nous avons examiné aussi l’influence du champ électrique sur la génération d’une goutte secondaire lors de la coalescence entre une goutte et une interface liquide-liquide déformable. Dans une seconde étape, nous avons étudié le drainage et la déformation de deux gouttes en interaction sous l’action d’une force constante. Contrairement à la théorie de lubrification basée entre autre sur l’hypothèse d’une petite déformation de l’interface, aucune hypothèse simplificatrice n’a été utilisée pour la résolution des équations, ce qui a permis d’obtenir des solutions numériques aussi bien pour les petites que pour les grandes déformations. Dans une troisième étape, nous avons examiné l’ascension d’une goutte isolée ou de deux gouttes de n-butanol dans l’eau sous l’influence de la force de flottabilité. L’évolution des vitesses terminales d’ascension des gouttes (goutte de tête/goutte suiveuse) et le drainage du film séparant les deux gouttes ont été analysées en présence et en l’absence de champ électrique. / Drops and bubbles interactions are encountered in various industrial and environmental applications. In this work, we focus on the electro-coalescence which has important industrial uses such as the destabilization of water / oil emulsions (coalescence of water droplets in oil). This study was devoted to the development and the elaboration of numerical models based on the Navier-Stokes equations and those describing the electrical field on a single drop as well as the interaction between two drops, and more particularly the effect of hydrodynamic and electrostatic forces on the thinning mechanism of the film separating the two drops. According to the treated cases, the interface tracking is achieved either by using the LS method (Level Set) or using the MM method (Moving Mesh). Numerical solutions were obtained using the commercial CFD software COMSOL Multiphysics. During the first step, we analyzed the effect of an electrical field on the deformation of a single suspended drop in another viscous fluid, for different physical and electrical properties of the two fluids. The model was tested and validated by comparison with existing analytical solutions and numerical studies found in the literature. We also analyzed the influence of the electric field on the generation of a secondary drop during the coalescence between a drop and a deformable liquid-liquid interface. In a second step, we investigated the drainage and deformation of two drops in interaction under the effect of a constant force. Unlike the lubrication theory which is based among others, on the assumption of a small interface deformation, in this work, no simplifying assumptions were used for the solution of equations, which allowed us to obtain numerical solutions for both small and large deformations. For the third step, we examined the rise of two drops of n-butanol in water under the influence of buoyancy force. The evolution of the drops terminal ascension velocity (leading drop/trailing drop), and the drainage of the film separating the two drops were analyzed in the presence and in the absence of electrical field.