When one brings a wet paintbrush into contact with a vertical watercolor paper, the paint may wick into the porous sheet completely or run down to ruin the art. We study a simple model of this spreading dynamics of liquids on hydrophilic porous sheets under the effects of gravity, using a capillary as a liquid source and thin fabrics of non-woven polyethylene terephthalate. Upon finding the maximum flow rate, Qw, that can be absorbed into the fabric, we show that the model can be used to obtain an estimate of the in-plane permeability of fabrics in a simpler manner than the conventional schemes. The shape of a wetting area that grows when the flow rate exceeds Qw to lead to rivulet formation is also theoretically given. The nose shape of the wetting front is shown to be time-invariant, while its profile depends on the properties of the liquid and the fabric. This study can be applied to understand and improve the liquid absorption behavior of hygiene items, heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning equipments, and fuel cell membranes in addition to elucidating the mundane painting activity.
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March 2015
Research Article|
March 11 2015
Wicking and flooding of liquids on vertical porous sheets
Seong Jin Kim;
Seong Jin Kim
1
Korea Institute of Science and Technology
, Seoul 136-791, South Korea
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Jin Woo Choi
;
Jin Woo Choi
2Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering,
Seoul National University
, Seoul 151-744, South Korea
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Myoung-Woon Moon;
Myoung-Woon Moon
a)
1
Korea Institute of Science and Technology
, Seoul 136-791, South Korea
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Kwang-Ryeol Lee;
Kwang-Ryeol Lee
1
Korea Institute of Science and Technology
, Seoul 136-791, South Korea
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Young Soo Chang;
Young Soo Chang
3
School of Mechanical Systems Engineering, Kookmin University
, Seoul 136-702, South Korea
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Dae-Young Lee;
Dae-Young Lee
1
Korea Institute of Science and Technology
, Seoul 136-791, South Korea
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Ho-Young Kim
Ho-Young Kim
b)
2Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering,
Seoul National University
, Seoul 151-744, South Korea
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a)
Electronic mail: mwmoon@kist.re.kr
b)
Electronic mail: hyk@snu.ac.kr
Physics of Fluids 27, 032105 (2015)
Article history
Received:
September 13 2014
Accepted:
February 26 2015
Citation
Seong Jin Kim, Jin Woo Choi, Myoung-Woon Moon, Kwang-Ryeol Lee, Young Soo Chang, Dae-Young Lee, Ho-Young Kim; Wicking and flooding of liquids on vertical porous sheets. Physics of Fluids 1 March 2015; 27 (3): 032105. https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4914384
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