Role of evaporation in stability of foam films and foams

Abstract

Understanding the stability of foam films and foams remains a challenge, despite the considerable efforts provided by the scientific community to refine their physical descriptions. This persistent difficulty underscores the interplay of various complex factors. Recently, the role of evaporation has attracted attention for its dual impact: it can either enhance stability or accelerate bursting. To depict a comprehensive overview on soapy objects, we propose first a short description on the evaporation of drops to present some key results on the evaporation-induced cooling and the consequences on the internal flows generated by Marangoni effects. Then, we review the literature on foam films and foams, examining three distinct systems: pure liquids, nonvolatile, and volatile surface active molecules. We show that evaporation of foam films and foams can lead to significant variations of temperature. In conclusion, we identify a series of open questions and suggest potential research pathways to address these challenges.

Type
Publication
Physical Review E