Exploring Ion and Heat Transport Across Confined Interfaces: Wetting Films and Thermal Anti-Bubbles - Aymeric Allemand (Université Libre de Bruxelles, Belgium)

During this seminar, I will present my research on transport phenomena within confined wetting films and on interfacial heat and mass transfer in encapsulated Leidenfrost drops.

My PhD work focuses on ion transport in thin wetting films. Using an experimental approach, we developed a system that allows continuous control of the film confinement as it spontaneously forms on a hydrophilic substrate. Ionic transport was then investigated through electrical conductance measurements. Complementary molecular dynamics simulations provided access to quantities that are experimentally inaccessible and allowed us to rationalize the observed behavior by introducing an additional friction force between the ions and the solid substrate.

In the second part of the talk, I will describe thermal antibubbles formed under microgravity conditions, which can be seen as drainage-free encapsulated Leidenfrost drops. The investigation of these systems revealed distinct heat transfer mechanisms compared to the classical liquid–liquid Leidenfrost effect, shedding new light on the stability and dynamics of gas–liquid interfaces.

Contact: Romain Lhermerout