Article,
Evolution Equations for the Surface Concentration of an Insoluble Surfactant; Applications to the Stability of an Elongating Thread and a Stretched Interface
Theoretical and Computational Fluid Dynamics, 17 (3): 147--164 (Apr 1, 2004)
DOI: 10.1007/s00162-004-0103-y
Abstract
The general form of the convection–diffusion equation governing the evolution of the surface concentration of an insoluble surfactant over an evolving interface is reviewed and discussed for three-dimensional, axisymmetric, and two-dimensional configurations. The linearized form of the evolution equation is then derived around cylindrical and planar shapes in a framework that is suitable for carrying out a linear stability analysis for axisymmetric or two-dimensional perturbations. Particular attention is paid to the cases of quiescent unperturbed fluids, unidirectional shear flow, and elongational flow. By way of application, the linearized transport equations are combined with Stokes-flow hydrodynamics to investigate the stability of an elongating cylindrical viscous thread suspended in an ambient viscous fluid or in a vacuum, and the stability of a two-dimensional interface separating two semi-infinite fluids and stretched under the action of an orthogonal stagnation-point flow. The results illustrate the possibly important role of the surfactant on the linear growth of periodic waves on the cylindrical interface, and reveal that the surfactant has no effect on the stability of the planar interface.
