Wetting States and Departure Diameters of Bubbles on Micro-/Nanostructured Surfaces
Abstract
Wetting states for droplets have been extensively investigated in the past. As the counter phase of the droplets, bubbles' wetting states have rarely been systematically explored. The wetting state of a bubble is closely related to its departure diameter, which plays significant roles in bubble-generated processes in boiling heat transfer and gas-evolving reactions. Based on the principle of minimum surface energy, we explicitly define three equilibrium wetting states (hemi-wicking state, Wenzel state, and Cassie-Baxter state) for bubbles on micro-/nanostructured surfaces in this paper. We analyze the three-phase contact line profiles for bubbles under these wetting states and propose theoretical models for predicting departure diameters of hemi-wicking-state bubble and Wenzel-state bubble on micro-/nanostructured surfaces. We identify competing effects of bubble departure in Wenzel state: the augmentation of contact line length due to the roughness, which would delay bubble departure, and the decrease of contact line length due to the reduced apparent contact angle, which would facilitate bubble departure. We demonstrate that hemi-wicking-state bubble exhibits a much smaller departure diameter on the textured surfaces. These findings are supported by numerical simulations by the three-dimensional (3D) multiple-relaxation-time lattice Boltzmann method. It is found that the length of the outermost contact lines instead of all contact lines determines the departure diameter of hemi-wicking-state bubble based on bubble detachment processes captured by our 3D numerical simulations. This work offers an avenue for the accurate prediction and control of bubble departure behaviors from micro-/nanostructured surfaces, and therefore can guide optimal designs of micro-/nanostructured surfaces in a variety of applications in boiling, desalination, and hydrogen production by electrolysis.
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The Cassie state is an ideal state for constructing a superaerophobic electrode, whereas the Wenzel and Gecko states are not suitable.
“In Cassie’s state, the bubble adopts a non-wetting contact mode on the catalyst surface, and the discontinuity of the solid–liquid-gas TPCL makes it easy for the bubbles to fall off the surface. Therefore, this state is an ideal state for constructing a superaerophobic electrode.”
From Advances in Surface/Interface Engineering of Under-Water Superaerophobic Electrodes for Hydrogen Evolution Reaction by Manipulating of Bubbles (2026) · cites this paper as [57]
The lotus state exhibits superaerophobicity due to its micro/nano hierarchical structure, minimizing the solid-liquid-gas three-phase contact line and reducing bubble adhesion force.
“As a unique case of Cassie’s state, the “lotus” state exhibits superaerophobic due to its micro/nano hierarchical structure, thereby minimizing the solid–liquid-gas TPCL and reducing the bubble adhesion force.”
From Advances in Surface/Interface Engineering of Under-Water Superaerophobic Electrodes for Hydrogen Evolution Reaction by Manipulating of Bubbles (2026) · cites this paper as [57]
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He, A., Chen, F., He, J., Zhang, X., Xie, S., Yao, N., Guo, Z., & Xu, W. (2026) · Nano-Micro Letters · doi:10.1007/s40820-026-02198-5 · Cited by 5 · see citing works
- Authors
- Li, J., Gong, S., Zhang, L., Cheng, P., Ma, X., & Hong, F.
- Affiliations
- Shanghai Jiao Tong University (CN)
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology (US)
- School of Mechanical Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China
- North China Electric Power University (CN)
- Corresponding author
- Gong, Shuai
- Venue
- Langmuir
- Publisher
- American Chemical Society (ACS)
- Published
- 2022-03-03
- Volume
- 38
- Issue
- 10
- Pages
- 3180-3188
- ISSN
- 0743-7463 (ISSN-L)
- 1520-5827
- OpenAlex
- W4214929597
- Cited by
- 36
- References
- 53
- Citations by year
- 2026: 4 · 2025: 9 · 2024: 11 · 2023: 10 · 2022: 2
- FWCI
- 2.11
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Licence
- Locations
- Langmuir (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- Ministry of Science and Technology of the People's Republic of China (2019ZX06004002)
- Shanghai Municipal Education Commission (20PJ1406800)
- National Natural Science Foundation of China (51521004, 51706135)
- Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Micro and Nano Heat Fluid Flow Technology and Energy Application, Suzhou University of Science and Technology (FLOW2001)
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Materials Science › Surfaces, Coatings and Films › Surface Modification and Superhydrophobicity
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Water Science and Technology › Minerals Flotation and Separation Techniques
- Physical Sciences › Engineering › Mechanical Engineering › Heat Transfer and Boiling Studies
- Keywords
- bubble departure diameter, Wenzel state, Cassie-Baxter state, contact line, micro/nanostructured surfaces, surface roughness, apparent contact angle, bubble detachment, boiling heat transfer, lattice Boltzmann method
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