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Effects of nozzle and fluid properties on the drop formation dynamics in a drop-on-demand inkjet printing

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Abstract

The droplet formation dynamics of a Newtonian liquid in a drop-on-demand (DOD) inkjet process is numerically investigated by using a volume-of-fluid (VOF) method. We focus on the nozzle geometry, wettability of the interior surface, and the fluid properties to achieve the stable droplet formation with higher velocity. It is found that a nozzle with contracting angle of 45° generates the most stable and fastest single droplet, which is beneficial for the enhanced printing quality and high-throughput printing rate. For this nozzle with the optimal geometry, we systematically change the wettability of the interior surface, i.e., different contact angles. As the contact angle increases, pinch-off time increases and the droplet speed reduces. Finally, fluids with different properties are investigated to identify the printability range.

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Abbreviations

ρ:

density (kg·m-3)

p :

pressure (Pa)

μ:

dynamic viscosity (Pa · s)

F :

surface tension (N · m-1)

υ:

droplet velocity (m · s-1)

g :

gravitational acceleration (m · s-2)

κ:

curvature of gas-liquid interface

ϕ:

nozzle wall contact angle (°)

θ:

nozzle contracting angle (°)

υe :

pinch-off speed (m · s-1)

αg :

volume fraction of gas phase

D n :

nozzle diameter (m)

tb 1 :

primary pinch-off time (s)

tb 2 :

end pinch-off time (s).

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Acknowledgements

A. B. AQEEL would like to thank the Chinese Scholarship Council (CSC) for providing Chinese Government Scholarship (CGS).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory for Turbulence and Complex Systems, Department of Mechanics and Engineering Science, Beijing Innovation Center for Engineering Science and Advanced Technology, College of Engineering, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, China

    A. B. Aqeel, M. Mohasan, Pengyu Lv, Yantao Yang & Huiling Duan

  2. National University of Sciences and Technology, H-12, Islamabad, Pakistan

    A. B. Aqeel

  3. Center for Applied Physics and Technology, Key Laboratory of High Energy Density Physics, and Inertial Fusion Sciences and Application Collaborative Innovation Center of Ministry of Education, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, China

    Huiling Duan

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  1. A. B. Aqeel
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  2. M. Mohasan
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Correspondence to Pengyu Lv or Yantao Yang.

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Citation: AQEEL, A. B., MOHASAN, M., LV, P. Y., YANG, Y. T., and DUAN, H. L. Effects of nozzle and fluid properties on the drop formation dynamics in a drop-on-demand inkjet printing. Applied Mathematics and Mechanics (English Edition, 40(9), 1239–1254 (2019) https://doi.org/10.1007/s10483-019-2514-7

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Aqeel, A.B., Mohasan, M., Lv, P. et al. Effects of nozzle and fluid properties on the drop formation dynamics in a drop-on-demand inkjet printing. Appl. Math. Mech.-Engl. Ed. 40, 1239–1254 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10483-019-2514-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10483-019-2514-7

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