arXiv subjects

Er Qiang Li

Publications and source records attributed to Er Qiang Li.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2025

Sound emission from oscillating bubbles trapped by the collapse of drop-impact craters

When a drop impacts a deep pool, it forms a crater which subsequently rebounds. Under certain conditions, a dimple forms at the crater bottom, which pinches off to entrap a small bubble. The oscillation of this entrapped bubble is the primary source of the underwater sound produced by rain. We use simultaneous ultra-high-speed video imaging and synchronized acoustic recording, with an immersed hydrophone, to investigate the details of the sound formation, over a range of impact Weber numbers and different dimple shapes. With frame-rates as high as 5 million fps, we can track the shape evolution of the pinched off dimple-bubble, which experiences large volumetric compression, by as much as 50%. The subsequent volume oscillations are consistent with the observed $\simeq 125$ Pa acoustic pressure amplitude, for the strongest compression. For our configuration the sound amplitude increases for smaller bubbles pinched off from the dimple. The acoustic forcing mechanism is therefore the inertial focusing of the momentum of the liquid outside the dimple, as it pinches off. The acoustic frequency agrees well with the Minnaert theory for freely oscillating spherical bubbles, of the same size. The finer details of the acoustic signal reveal an interplay between the larger dimple bubble and the tiny bubble entrapped during the initial contact between the drop and pool. For the singular dimple where no bubble is pinched off, the sound generation has a broader range of frequencies, with the tiny bubble oscillating at $\sim 100$ kHz, after being deformed by the rapid vertical retraction of the dimple below the singular jet.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2021

The Inverse-Square Law Force between Vapor-Mediated Droplets

In 1687, Sir Issac Newton published The Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy in which the law of universal gravitation was derived. It is the first inverse-square law discovered in nature, combined with Coulomb's law in 1785, the two famous inverse-square laws become part of the foundation of physics. Why does nature prefer inverse-square laws over the laws of other forms? The question is still arousing broad discussion, and it is an important topic in physics. So far, the origin of inverse-square law is still under exploration although from the point of reductionism, the law of universal gravitation can be treated as the approximation of Einstein's general relativity under weak gravitation, and Coulomb's law could be derived from quantum electrodynamics. Here we discover a new inverse-square law between evaporating droplets deposited on a high energy solid substrate. For binary droplets, we show that the evaporation from a source droplet will create a surface tension gradient in the precursor film of a target droplet, resulting in a long-range inverse-square law force acting on the target droplet, and that the inverse proportion decay of the source vapor concentration in the space essentially contributes to the inverse-square form of the force. Furthermore, the inverse-square law force here is shown to hold for all experimental parameters tested, and other systems such as pure-liquid-droplet system and thermocapillary system, and it satisfies the superposition principle, not only suggesting exciting directions for future droplet research and applications, but also benefiting understanding of nature's predilection for inverse-square law.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2013

Piezoelectric Drop-on-Demand Inkjet Printing of Rat Fibroblast Cells: Survivability Study and Pattern Printing

A novel piezoelectric, drop-on-demand (DOD) inkjet system has been developed and used to print L929 rat fibroblast cells. We investigate the survivability of the cells subjected to the large stresses during the printing process. These stresses are varied by changing the diameter of the orifice (36 to 119 microns) through which the cells are dispensed, as well as changing the electrical pulse used to drive the piezoelectric element. It is shown that for the smallest 36 microns diameter orifice, cell survival rates fall from 95% to approximately 76% when the ejection velocity is increased from 2 to 16 m/s. This decrease in survival rates is less significant when the larger orifice diameters of 81 microns and 119 microns are used. Analysis shows that there is a clear inverse relationship between cell survival rates and the mean shear rates during drop formation. By using the same printing set-up, fibroblast cells are printed onto alginate and collagen into patterns. Printed cells are cultured over a period of days to verify their long-term viability. Fibroblasts printed onto the collagen are found to successfully adhere, spread and proliferate, subsequently forming a denser patterns after 5 days in culture. Cell agglomeration is found to affect the printing performance, especially for the printhead with the smallest orifice, leading to frequent clogging of the nozzle. We also study the number of cells in each droplet, when printed under optimal conditions. The probability density of this number follows a binomial distribution, which consistent with a uniform distribution of cells in the medium and within the printhead.

physics.bio-ph↗