{"id":15896,"date":"2024-06-06T18:37:47","date_gmt":"2024-06-06T16:37:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.icpf.cas.cz\/?p=15896"},"modified":"2024-06-06T18:46:49","modified_gmt":"2024-06-06T16:46:49","slug":"kelvin-equation-for-bridging-transitions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.icpf.cas.cz\/en\/kelvin-equation-for-bridging-transitions\/","title":{"rendered":"Kelvin equation for bridging transitions"},"content":{"rendered":"

If two solid surfaces immersed in a fluid get sufficiently close together, a local condensation between them may occur. These so-called bridging transitions, referring to the formation of a liquid film connecting the surfaces, depend sensitively on their shape. The theoretical study led by Prof. Alexandr Malijevsk\u00fd<\/a> and published in Physical Review E<\/em> formulates general conditions for bridging transitions between a pair of surfaces of arbitrary shapes. We have shown that the problem can be solved effectively by an appropriate mapping of the system to a much simpler one formed by a pair of parallel plates leading to a newly generalized Kelvin equation (see Fig. 1). The equation was utilized to examine asymptotic behavior of bridging transitions and their relation to capillary condensation for a class of fundamental walls geometries. We have shown that the gradual flattening of the confining walls leads to a critical phenomenon characterized by a diverging growth of the bridging film. Associated geometry-dependent critical exponents were determined, and a covariance law revealing a relation between the geometric and Young\u2019s contact angle for wedge-like structures was found. All the analytical predictions were confirmed numerically using appropriate molecular models.<\/p>\n

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Fig. 1. Bridging between a pair of walls of complex geometry (left) can be mapped to a system formed of planar walls of appropriate dimensions (right)<\/span><\/p>\n