title: Lattice-Boltzmann simulations of droplet evaporation.
abstract: We study the utility and validity of lattice-Boltzmann (LB) simulations to explore droplet evaporation driven by a concentration gradient. Using a binary-fluid lattice-Boltzmann algorithm based on Cahn-Hilliard dynamics, we study the evaporation of planar films and 3D sessile droplets from smooth solid surfaces. Our results show that LB simulations accurately reproduce the classical regime of quasi-static dynamics. Beyond this limit, we show that the algorithm can be used to explore regimes where the evaporative and diffusive timescales are not widely separated, and to include the effect of boundaries of prescribed driving concentration. We illustrate the method by considering the evaporation of a droplet from a solid surface that is chemically patterned with hydrophilic and hydrophobic stripes.
authors.affiliation: Oxford Centre for Collaborative Applied Mathematics, Mathematical Institute, University of Oxford, Radcliffe Observatory Quarter, Woodstock Road, Oxford OX2 6GG, UK.
authors.forename: Rodrigo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Ledesma-Aguilar
authors.forename: Dominic
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Vella
authors.forename: Julia M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Yeomans