Role of surface viscoelasticity in satellite-drop formation

Determine how surface viscoelasticity modulates satellite-drop formation during the breakup of liquid threads, including the mechanisms by which surface shear viscosity and dilatational elasticity alter the pinch-off topology.

Background

The paper studies the breakup of liquid threads coated with an adsorbed bovine serum albumin layer, which introduces surface viscoelasticity while leaving the liquid bulk approximately Newtonian. Prior theoretical work suggested that surface viscous stresses could reduce satellite-drop size, but experimental evidence was lacking. Although surface elasticity had been shown to affect film rupture and bubble-bursting jetting, its role in liquid-thread breakup had not been established. The paper explicitly identifies the modulation of satellite-drop formation by surface viscoelasticity as an open question; it subsequently addresses this question through experiments and a one-dimensional theoretical model.