Rapid Plateau border size variations expected in three simple experiments on 2D liquid foams

Cyprien Gay (1) , Pierre Rognon (1, 2) , Douglas Reinelt (3) , François Molino (4)

1 MSC - Matière et Systèmes Complexes
2 CRPP - Centre de recherches Paul Pascal
3 Department of Mathematics
4 IGF - Institut de Génomique Fonctionnelle

Up to a global scaling, the geometry of foams squeezed between two solid plates (2D GG foams) essentially depends on two independent parameters: the liquid volume fraction and the degree of squeezing (bubble thickness to diameter ratio). We describe it in two main asymptotic regimes: fully dry floor tiles, where the Plateau border radius is smaller than the distance between the solid plates, and dry pancakes, where it is larger. We predict a rapid variation of the Plateau border radius in one part of the pancake regime, namely when the Plateau border radius is larger than the inter-plate distance but smaller than the geometric mean of that distance and the bubble perimeter. This rapid variation is not related to any topological change in the foam: in all the regimes we consider, the bubbles remain in mutual lateral contact through films located at mid-height between both plates. We provide asymptotic predictions in different types of experiments on such 2D GG foams: when foam is being progressively dried or wetted, when it is being squeezed further or stretched, when it coarsens through film breakage or through inter-bubble gas diffusion. Our analysis is restricted to configurations close to equilibrium, as we do not include stresses resulting from bulk viscous flow or from non-homogeneous surfactant concentrations. We also assume that the inter-plate distance is sufficiently small for gravity to be negligible. The present work does not provide a method for measuring small Plateau border radii experimentally, but it indicates that large (and easily observable) Plateau borders should appear or disappear rather suddenly in some types of experiments with small inter-plate gaps. It also gives expected orders of magnitude that should be helpful for designing experiments on 2D GG foams.

Mots clés: foam; emulsion; materials; Plateau border; volume fraction

Domaines: Matière Molle [cond-mat.soft]

Cyprien Gay, Pierre Rognon, Douglas Reinelt, François Molino. Rapid Plateau border size variations expected in three simple experiments on 2D liquid foams. European Physical Journal E: Soft matter and biological physics, 2011, 34 (1), pp.1-11. ⟨10.1140/epje/i2011-11002-3⟩. ⟨hal-00361004⟩