Slip or not slip? A methodical examination of the interface formation
model using two-dimensional droplet spreading on a horizontal planar
substrate as a prototype system
We consider the spreading of a thin two-dimensional droplet on a planar
substrate as a prototype system to compare the contemporary model for contact
line motion based on interface formation of Shikhmurzaev [Int. J. Multiphas.
Flow 19, 589 (1993)], to the more commonly used continuum fluid dynamical
equations augmented with the Navier-slip condition. Considering quasistatic
droplet evolution and using the method of matched asymptotics, we find that the
evolution of the droplet radius using the interface formation model reduces to
an equivalent expression for a slip model, where the prescribed microscopic
dynamic contact angle has a velocity dependent correction to its static value.
This result is found for both the original interface formation model
formulation and for a more recent version, where mass transfer from bulk to
surface layers is accounted for through the boundary conditions. Various
features of the model, such as the pressure behaviour and rolling motion at the
contact line, and their relevance, are also considered in the prototype system
we adopt.Comment: 45 pages, 18 figure