Dynamic behavior of water droplets on wetted superhydrophobic surfaces under a high AC electric field

Abstract

In this paper, the dynamic behavior of water droplets was investigated on wetted hydrophobic and surperhydrophobic surfaces under a high AC electric field. The droplets on superhydrophobic surface coalesced and slid off the inclined surface before the flashover occurred, while the droplets on hydrophobic surface stayed on the surface and could not roll off easily even under the breakdown field strength. Due to the behaviors of water droplets on the surfaces under the high AC electric field, the flashover voltage of the superhydrophobic surface was increased by 35.8 percent. A two-dimensional simulation model was developed to investigate the dynamic behavior of water droplets on surperhydrophobic surface. The results showed that, the adjacent water droplets were elongated and a liquid bridge was formed between the droplets under electric field. The coalescence of water droplets was impelled by the surface tension force and electric force.