The effect of electrostatic forces on droplet suspensions

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the effect of electrostatic forces on droplet suspensions. Direct numerical simulations are used to examine the effect of electric fields on the behavior of suspensions of drops in dielectric fluids. The effect of electric field is modeled using the leaky dielectric model coupled with the full Navier–Stokes equations. The governing equations are solved using a front-tracking volume technique. The interaction of the drops is strongly dependent on the conductivity and the permittivity ratio. But fibration, where drops line up into long columns, takes place over a wide range of these parameters. The hydrodynamic interaction because of fluid circulation induced by the electric field has a strong influence on the drop distribution and the rate of fibration.