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Thermodynamic and Mechanical Timescales Involved in Foam Film Rupture and Liquid Foam Coalescence
Author(s) -
Rio Emmanuelle,
Biance AnneLaure
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
chemphyschem
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.016
H-Index - 140
eISSN - 1439-7641
pISSN - 1439-4235
DOI - 10.1002/cphc.201402195
Subject(s) - coalescence (physics) , limiting , materials science , composite material , thermodynamics , nanotechnology , physics , mechanical engineering , astrobiology , engineering
Recent advances in the coalescence in liquid foams are reviewed, with a special focus on the multiscale structure of foams. Studies concerning the stability of isolated foam films, on the one hand, and the coalescence process in macroscopic foams, on the other hand, are not always in good agreement. This discrepancy reveals that two routes can induce coalescence in a foam. The first route is thermodynamic and shows that coalescence is governed by a stochastic rupture of foam films. The second route relies on a mechanically induced rupture of the films, due to the spontaneous evolution of foams. From a literature review, the evaluation of the different timescales involved in these mechanisms allows defining the limiting parameters of foam coalescence.