Experimental investigations of liquid-infused surface robustness under turbulent flow

Abstract

Liquid-infused surfaces present a novel coating for passive drag reduction in turbulent flows. Conceptually similar to superhydrophobic surfaces, which are composed of air pockets trapped within hydrophobic roughness, liquid-infused surfaces instead rely on a preferentially wetting, liquid lubricant to create a heterogeneous surface of fluid–solid and fluid–fluid interfaces. The mobility of the lubricant within the textures allows the fluid–fluid interfaces to support a finite interfacial slip velocity. In the proper configuration, the collection of slipping interfaces can result in a significant reduction in skin friction drag. However, sustaining this drag reduction is predicated on mainta..