Predicting the spreading kinetics of high-temperature liquids on solid surfaces

• Published in: Journal of materials research Vol. 13; no. 12; pp. 3504 - 3511
• Main Author: Weirauch, Douglas A.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York, USA Cambridge University Press 01.12.1998
• ISSN: 0884-2914; 2044-5326
• DOI: 10.1557/JMR.1998.0478

The rate of movement of liquid drops toward their equilibrium position on smooth, horizontal solid surfaces (spreading kinetics) is considered in this study. A model for nonreactive liquid spreading which was developed for low-temperature liquids is applied to results for a set of high-temperature liquids and room-temperature liquids. These data were generated in a single laboratory following a consistent experimental methodology. The liquid-solid pairs were chosen to result in weak or no interfacial chemical reaction. Furnace atmospheres were chosen to provide data for liquid metals with submonolayer, thin or thick oxide films. Analysis of the high-temperature spreading kinetics for liquids covering a broad range of viscosity, surface tension, and density shows that they can be predicted with a constant shift factor applied to the deGennes expression for nonreactive spreading. The consequences of gravitational and inertial forces, substrate roughness, weak interfacial reactions, and liquid-metal oxide films are discussed.