A review of liquid atomization by electrical means

The research discipline concerning liquid atomization by electrical means is a broad discipline with a long history. As with any such discipline, communication between researchers and periodic evaluation facilitate technical progress. Complications arise when, from author to author, terminology and basic experimental techniques become incongruous and easy comparisons obviated. Several reviews on the discipline have been published that treat the historical aspects and modern research. No such review has been published since 1990. This present work focuses on post-1990 literature, not repeating the vast history. In all, 47 reference works were investigated, of which 36 are articles concerning the atomization of liquids by primarily electrical means. As a method to show the diverse range of liquids that can be electrically atomized and to illuminate the discontinuities of data within this range, 70 liquids, as presented in the atomization references, are catalogued by reported liquid properties. The nomenclature of electrical atomization spray modes suggested by Cloupeau and Prunet-Foch (J. Electrostatics 25, 165, 1990) has been continued. Three additional definitions are presented. Suggestions as to the nomenclature and unit system used, as well as the reporting of liquid properties and experimental configurations, have been made with the purpose of facilitating comparison of future experimental results.