This paper was presented at the 4th Micro and Nano Flows Conference (MNF2014), which was held at University College, London, UK. The conference was organised by Brunel University and supported by the Italian Union of Thermofluiddynamics, IPEM, the Process Intensification Network, the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, the Heat Transfer Society, HEXAG - the Heat Exchange Action Group, and the Energy Institute, ASME Press, LCN London Centre for Nanotechnology, UCL University College London, UCL Engineering, the International NanoScience Community, www.nanopaprika.eu.The efficacy of applications of water-in-oil-in-water (w/o/w) double emulsions
moving in microchannels is significantly impacted by the flow conditions in the inner aqueous cores.
For example in the case of shear sensitive cells transported in the cores, high shear conditions may be
deleterious. This study reports on the flow topology inside w/o/w cores determined by means of
micro-particle image velocimetry (μPIV) and compares it to the flow in single water-in-oil (w/o)
microdroplets with equal sizes moving in a rectangular microchannel. The multiphase flow system
employed in the study had a viscosity ratio, λ, between oil and aqueous phase of the order of unity (λ
= 0.8) and both single and compound droplets filled the channels. This configuration resulted in a
weak recirculating flow inside the w/o single droplet: the measured flow field exhibited a uniform low
velocity flow field in the central region surrounded by small regions of reversed flow near the channel
walls. This flow topology was maintained in the inner cores of w/o/w double emulsions for
intermediate capillary numbers (Ca) ranging from 10-3 to 10-2, and core morphologies varying from
large plug to pancake cores. The core morphology affected the magnitude and distribution of the
velocity in the droplets. The similarity in the flow pattern results from the fact that inner cores were
located at the back of the outer droplet in such a way that inner and outer interfaces were in contact
for half of core surface area and separated by a thin lubricating film
