Developing Laminar

Gravity-Driven Thin Liquid Film

Flow Down an Inclined Plane
H. Lan Three-dimensional (3D)—steady-developing-laminar-isothermal—and gravity-driven
thin liquid film flow adjacent to an inclined plane is examined and the effects of film flow
J. L. Wegener rate, surface tension, and surface inclination angle on the film thickness and film width
are presented. The film flow was numerically simulated using the volume of fluid model
B. F. Armaly and experimental verification was conducted by measuring film thickness and width using
a laser focus displacement instrument. The steady film flow that is considered in this
J. A. Drallmeier study does not have a leading contact line, however, it has two steady side contact lines
with the substrate surface at the outer edge of its width. Results reveal that the film width
Department of Mechanical and Aerospace decreases and the average film thickness increases as the film flows down the inclined
Engineering, plane. The film thickness and width decrease but its streamwise velocity increases as
Missouri University of Science and Technology, surface inclination angle (as measured from the horizontal plane) increases. A higher film
Rolla, MO 65401 flow rate is associated with a higher film thickness, a higher film width, and a higher
average film velocity. Films with higher surface tension are associated with a smaller
width and a higher average thickness. A ripple develops near the side contact line, i.e.,
the spanwise distribution of the film thickness exhibits peaks at the outer edges of the film
width and the height of this ripple increases as the surface tension or the film flow rate
increases. The width of the film decreases at a faster rate along the streamwise direction
if liquid film has higher surface tension. Measurements of the film thickness and the film
width compare favorably with the numerically simulated results.
!DOI: 10.1115/1.4002109"

1 Introduction
Gravity-driven thin liquid film flow is encountered in many
engineering applications, such as in coating, painting, lubrication,
and film condensation. Numerous publications have appeared in
literature on this topic and most of them focused on film surface
instability, leading contact line movement, or the effects of sub-
strate topography on film surface characteristics. Long-wave or
lubrication theory was extensively used to analytically solve the
gravity-driven thin liquid film flows. It was based on the
asymptotic reduction in the governing equations and boundary
conditions to a simplified system, which often consists of a single
nonlinear partial differential equation formulated in terms of local
film thickness !1". Such approach was utilized by Gaskell et al. !2"
and by Alekseenko and Nakoryakov !3". In the latter study, a
linear stability analysis based on the resulting evolution equation
and a weakly nonlinear analysis of that equation was carried out
for analyzing film surface instabilities. Billingham !4" used the
lubrication approximation together with a contact line model to
study the motion of the leading contact line. He concludes that the
dynamic contact angle is equal to the static contact angle #remains
constant$ when the film is very thin but it starts to increase as the
film becomes thicker. Scholle and Aksel !5" examined viscocapil-
lary film flow behavior in an inclined open channel #film was in
contact with side walls$ and deduced film surface characteristics
and velocity profile from the solution of the Navier–Stokes equa-
tions.
The literature has many publications that examine the effects of
substrate topography or surface obstacles on the dynamics of the
film surface. Baxter et al. !6" studied the gravity-driven Stokes
flow over submerged hemispherical and cylindrical obstacles and
Contributed by the Fluids Engineering Division of ASME for publication in the
JOURNAL OF FLUIDS ENGINEERING. Manuscript received July 10, 2009; final manuscript
received June 18, 2010; published online August 2, 2010. Assoc. Editor: Theodore
Heindel.
observed that the free surface exhibits an upstream peak that is
followed by a trough downstream of the obstacle. Sellier et al. !7"
modeled such flow pass over occlusions using lubrication theory
and observed that the occlusions lead to many features that are
inherent in thin film flow over fully submerged microscale topo-
graphic features. Perturbation analysis was utilized by Luo and
Pozrikidis !8,9" to analyze the free surface response to substrate
corrugations. Bontozoglou and Serifi !10" examined falling films
flowing over backward-facing step and forward-facing step and it
was found that the capillary features first grow with Reynolds
number but eventually diminish when inertial force overpower
capillary force.
Thin liquid film flow behaviors were examined experimentally
by several investigators. Zhou et al. !11" investigated falling film
by measuring film thickness using a confocal chromatic sensing
technique. It was reported that film thickness increases with Rey-
nolds number but decreases with plate inclination angle. Roy and
Jain !12" also examined the effects of inclination angle and Rey-
nolds number on film thickness and on the propagation velocity of
an interfacial disturbance. Liu et al. !13" examined the wave in-
stabilities that develop on the interface of a gravity-driven liquid
film and illustrated that under certain high film flow rates, these
surface waves make a transition from stable 2D structures to com-
plex 3D chaotic structures. Zhang et al. !14" investigated the ef-
fects of surface heating on the film behavior, and the results
showed that film surface area increases when the substrate is
cooled and decreases when the substrate is heated due to changes
in surface tension.
Several studies utilized the volume of fluid model #VOF$ to
determine the air-liquid interface of thin film flows by treating it
as a two-phase flow problem. Lan et al. !15" used this model for
simulating a 3D shear-driven thin film flow in a horizontal duct
with good agreement with measured values. This scheme was also
used by Gao et al. !16" and Gu et al. !17" to track the interface of
a gravity-driven film flow. Similarly, Guerrero and Naseri-Neshat
!18" successfully used the model to simulate gravity-driven mol-

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Fig. 1 Schematic of the computational domain
ten glass flow over a sharp edge and their results show that the
film thickness and velocity increase with increasing contact angle
for fixed surface tension. These studies validate the use of the
VOF model for parametrically studying the effects of various pa-
rameters on gravity-driven flow behavior.
It should be noted that most of the published studies that were
found in the literature dealt with either 2D flow or 3D flow where
the films are in contact with side walls, i.e., no side contact lines
with the substrate surface. The major interest in these studies fo-
cused on the leading contact line behavior or on the surface insta-
bilities that resulted from forced perturbation or subsurface topog-
raphy. These issues are not considered in this study since they do
not affect mean film thickness and film width. To the authors’
knowledge, a coordinated effort of simulating and measuring the
effects of film flow rate, surface tension, and gravity on the 3D
laminar flow behavior of a developing gravity-driven thin film
that has steady side contact lines has not appeared in the literature
and that motivated the present study.
2 Problem Specification and Numerical Parametric
Study
Numerical simulations of three-dimensional-isothermal-
developing-gravity-driven thin liquid film flow on an inclined
plane are performed to examine the effects of film flow rate, sur-
face tension and surface inclination angle on film thickness and
width distributions. The geometry and flow conditions used in the
numerical simulation, which are presented in Fig. 1, are equiva-
lent to the ones in experimental conditions that will be described
in more details in the next section of this manuscript. The geom-
etry consists of an open channel with a width of 101.6 mm, a
length of 260 mm, and a height 20.32 mm. The liquid is injected
in a direction normal to the inclined bottom surface of the open
channel and it is driven along the inclined surface by gravitational
force. The liquid injection zone has a length of 6.35 mm #in the
streamwise direction x$ and width of 76.2 mm #in the spanwise
direction z$. The spanwise width of the injection zone is equal to
three-quarters #3/4$ of the width of the open channel, thus, devel-
oping a film that is not in contact with the side walls. It is impor-
tant to note that this film does not have a leading contact line, but
has side contact lines with the bottom surface that develop at the
two edges of the film width. The thickness of the developing
liquid film in this study is always less than 1 mm, so that the flow
is in thin film flow regime.
The governing 3D Navier–Stokes equations along with the 3D
VOF model are used to numerically simulate the gravity-driven
film flow that was described in the above section by utilizing the
FLUENT computational fluid dynamics #CFD$ code as a platform.
A detailed description of this model and the equations that are
used can be found in the FLUENT 6.3 user’s guide documentation
!19" and in Ref. !15". It has been shown by Lan et al. !15" that a
reasonable criterion for identifying the interface between two
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Table 1 Grid independence study „! = 60°, Q = 11.31 cm3 / s,
and " = 0.026 N / m…
Mesh Film thickness Film width
#x % y % z$ #'m$ #mm$
110% 60% 52 374 70.2
110% 80% 52 379 69.9
110% 60% 72 370 70.3
110% 80% 72 375 70.1
phases #air and liquid$ while using VOF model is the location
where the liquid volume fraction is equal to 0.5, i.e., ! f = 0.5. The
effect of surface tension on the film flow behavior is represented
by a volume force in the 3D VOF model and is equivalent to a
source term in the momentum equations. This force is applied
only to computational cells that are in the air-liquid interface re-
gion of the film and is a function of surface tension #"$, the
gradient of the liquid film volume fraction #! f $, the local curva-
ture of the interface ##$, and the wall contact angle #$w$. The
spanwise component of this force is acting on the ripple surface of
the film and pointing inward toward the film center. An implicit
interpolation scheme near the interface is used for generating
steady state solution in this study. The SIMPLE algorithm is used
to deal with the coupling computations between the flow and the
pressure fields. A body force weighted discretization scheme is
used for the pressure correction equation and a second order up-
wind discretization scheme is applied to all other equations. The
computation is regarded as converged when the residuals for all
variables are less than 10−6.
The length of the computational domain is selected to be longer
than the experimental geometry, i.e., 550 mm as compared with
260 mm, in order to reduce the influence of the outlet boundary
condition on the simulated flow in the region of interest. The
liquid injection region starts at x = 31.75 mm and ends at x
= 38.1 mm. A pressure boundary condition is used at the inlet
plane #x = 0.0 mm$, at the outlet plane #x = xmax = 550 mm$, and at
the top plane #y = y max = 20.32 mm$ of the open channel. The
gauge pressure at all three planes is chosen as zero in the simula-
tion. The no-slip boundary condition is imposed on all the solid
walls. A uniform transverse velocity is imposed at the liquid in-
jection region and this uniform velocity is calculated from the
measured liquid volume flow rate divided by the liquid injection
area. Isothermal flow conditions are considered and fluid proper-
ties are evaluated at a temperature of 20° C. Nonuniform meshes
are used in the simulations, such that the mesh inside the liquid
film and near the interface region is finer than that in the region
adjacent to surrounding air. A grid with approximately 0.35
% 106 cells #x % y % z as 110% 60% 52$, where 20 of the trans-
verse grid points are located in the region of y & 500 'm, was
selected for generating the results that are presented in this study.
A grid-independence study #summarized in Table 1$ was per-
formed and it was found that the use of a finer mesh produces less
than 2% change in both the film thickness and the film width.
3 Experimental Verification
The experimental facilities used in this study consist of a pres-
surized tank holding the liquid solution #water with the addition of
surfactant$, a rotameter measuring the liquid flow rate, a laser
focus displacement #LFD$ instrument for measuring film thick-
ness and width, a digital camera for capturing general features of
the flowing film, and the test channel. The LFD instruments and
the camera are situated parallel and above the inclined test surface
on a traverse mechanism. The test channel consisted of an alumi-
num bottom plane surface with plexiglass side walls and this open
channel can be inclined to any desired inclination angle. A porous
plug is embedded in and is flush with the test surface to facilitate
Transactions of the ASME
 Fig. 2 Experimental facilities

uniform liquid injection onto the test surface. The liquid storage
tank, pressurized by air at 345 kPa, forces the liquid solution
through the connecting tubes that are leading to the porous plug.
Great care is taken to insure that the test surface is leveled in the
spanwise z-direction to eliminate the occurrence of a biased film
flow. A photograph that captures the layout of some of these com-
ponents is shown in Fig. 2.
Under steady flow conditions, a stable liquid film flow develops
on the test surface of the open channel where the developing flow
region is recorded by the digital camera and the local film thick-
ness and width are measured by the LFD instrument at only one
x-plane that is 100 mm away from the downstream edge of the
porous plug. The effect of gravity is examined by changing the
inclination angle of the test channel relative to the horizontal Fig. 3 „a… Schematic of an LFD instrument and „b… influence of
plane. The effect of film flow rate is examined by varying its film surface orientation on measurements
magnitude by the controlling valve of the rotameter. Water is used
as the liquid in this study and the addition of surfactant #Surfynol
465$ reduces its surface tension !20" and enhances the likelihood
to oscillate through the entire film thickness by oscillating the
of developing uniform film flow on the test surface. This type of
objective lens in the normal direction, and the oscillation fre-
surfactant is highly soluble in water, thus, forming a uniform
quency and amplitude can be adjusted and controlled. The light
water-surfactant solution in the isothermal film. The effects of
receiving optics senses the maximum intensity of light reflection
surface tension are examined by changing the surfactant’s concen-
when the focal point of the incident beam crosses the liquid-air
tration in the water-surfactant solution. Two surfactant-water con-
interface. The operation of the LFD instrument matches the de-
centrations #0.1% and 1.0% of surfactant by mass$ are utilized to
tected light intensity peak with the objective lens location, thus,
determine the effect of surface tension on film thickness and width
determining the film thickness. A detailed description of this mea-
and the properties for these solutions are listed in Table 2. A
suring technique can be found in the work of Takamasu and
photomicroscope is used to measure the static contact angle that is
Hazuku !21", Tbusam et al. !22", and Hazuku and Fukamachi
formed between a static liquid drop and the aluminum substrate.
!23". The LT-9030 model LFD instrument manufactured by Key-
Multiple measurements of the static contact angle are made result-
ence Corporation is used in this study. Film surface orientation
ing in an uncertainty of (3 deg and the results are listed in Table
relative to the incident beam could significantly change the direc-
2. It was assumed in this study that the film is isothermal and the
tion of the reflected beam as shown in Fig. 3#b$ making it impos-
addition of small amount of surfactant to the water does not create
sible for the receiving optics to properly detect and measure the
a concentration gradient within the solution due to its high solu-
reflected beam. This results in limitations on the suitability and the
bility, thus, justifying the neglect of Marangoni effect in the simu-
accuracy of this LFD instrument for measuring the thickness of
lation model.
films with steep interface angles. Although the details of the in-
A schematic of the LFD instrument that is used to measure film
strument response to wavy films is outside of the scope of this
thickness and width is shown in Fig. 3. The semiconductor laser
study, several validation experiments were conducted to assess the
source produces a diverging laser beam, which is collimated by a
limitations of the device to angled interfaces. In particular, several
lens prior to passing through an objective lens. The objective lens
thin and transparent disks with known thickness were inclined and
focuses the collimated beam to a focal point, which can be made
measured using the LFD instrument. From those experiments, it
was determined that the uncertainty in the measured thickness was
less than 0.5 'm for cases, where the inclination angle was less
Table 2 Properties of water-surfactant „Surfynol 465… solution
than 6 deg. This uncertainty increases after the surface angle ex-
Mass fraction of surfactant in water #%$ 0.1 1 ceeds 6 deg due to the small reflected energy that is being re-
Surface tension #N/m$ 0.042 0.026 ceived through the pinhole of the detector. It should be noted that
Static contact angle #deg$ 30 17 these results depend on instrument characteristics, such as the
transmitted cone angle and the material refractive index. Fortu-

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 Fig. 5 Effects of surface tension and contact angle on film
thickness and width

film width and its surface area decrease as the film flows on the
inclined plane, similar to what is observed experimentally. The
decrease in film width is due to the effect of surface tension
#mainly exhibited as cohesive force between fluid particles at the
interface region$, which tends to minimize the film surface area.
Fig. 4 General flow features in the developing flow regime The plane at x = 138.1 mm #100 mm away from injection zone$ is
designated for the measurement location #ML$ where film thick-
ness and width were measured in this study and that plane is
nately, the stable gravity-driven thin films that are obtained in this shown in this figure for clarity.
study offer a relatively smooth interface, thus, making the LFD
4.1.1 Effects of Surface Tension and Contact Angle. The ef-
instrument suitable for measuring its local thickness across most
fects of surface tension and contact angle on film thickness and
of its width but not at the outer edges of its width. The range of
width are presented in Fig. 5 at x = 138.1 mm #at ML$. A higher
film thickness, which can be measured by this instrument is lim-
surface tension or contact angle results in a smaller film width but
ited to 2.0 mm with a spatial resolution of 0.1 'm. A large sample
higher film thickness in the region of the ripples that develop at
of data collected at one measuring point #a cycle time of 1.92 ms$
the edges of the film width. It is interesting to note that the film
is used to calculate a mean value for the local film thickness. The
temporal fluctuation in the film thickness measured at the center
of the film width over the cycle time was less than 1% of the film
thickness for the conditions considered in these experiments. The
total film thickness uncertainty as determined from all aspects
including instrument positioning, environmental fluctuations, day-
to-day repeatability, spatial resolution for the focused beam, and
temporal variations was (9 'm at the spanwise center of the film
width.
Film thickness measurements were performed by crossing over
the entire film width at only one x-plane #the measurement loca-
tion, i.e., x = 138.1 mm$. The film width is also measured by using
the same LFD instrument and identifying the location of outer
edges of film on the substrate surface. Film width measurements
were performed before and after film thickness measurements in
order to ensure that the film width was not changing during the
measuring time period. The operating sequence in this experiment
started with a steady high film flow rate for which case film thick-
ness and width measurements were not performed. The film flow
rate is then reduced slowly from this high level until the film
width started to respond to the decrease in the film flow rate, i.e.,
decreases slowly as the film flow rate decreases #film is moving
on a wetted surface$. Measurements of film thickness and width
are then performed for film flow rates that are lower than that
initial higher value. This operational sequence ensured high level
of repeatability in film thickness and width measurements for a
give film flow rate.

4 Results and Discussion

4.1 Numerical Results. The numerical results are presented
in the Figs. 4–10. The general film flow features of the 3D
gravity-driven-isothermal liquid film flow along the inclined plane
are shown in Fig. 4 for the case of ) = 60 deg, Q = 6.62 cm3 / s,
and " = 0.026 N / m #the rectangular liquid injection region is
marked by lines in the figure$. Three cross sectional planes at x
= 100 mm, x = 200 mm, and x = 300 mm are shown in Fig. 4 to
illustrate the spanwise distribution of the film thickness at these
locations. The spanwise film thickness distribution exhibits ap-
proximately a uniform thickness at the spanwise center of the film Fig. 6 Effects of film flow rate on film development „a… "
while surface ripples develop at the edges of the film width. The = 0.042 N / m and „b… " = 0.026 N / m

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 Fig. 7 Effects of film flow rate and surface tension on film
thickness and width

thickness at the center of the film width is not affected signifi-

cantly by surface tension at this particular streamwise location.
The location of the side contact line is governed by the balance
between the cohesive force #originated from neighboring fluid
particles$ and the adhesive force #originated from the solid wall to
the fluid at the outer edges of interfacial area$. In this study, the
decrease in film width #i.e., the inward movement of side contact

Fig. 9 Simulated results at „a… z = 50 mm and x = 138.1 mm

and 2D analytical results for film thickness; „b… z = 50 mm and
x = 138.1 mm and 2D analytical results for film velocity
distribution

lines$ in the streamwise direction is due to relatively higher cohe-

sive force than adhesive force that develops in the film. Fluids
with higher surface tension or with higher contact angle produce a
higher cohesive force and lower adhesive force in the spanwise
direction respectively, thus, exhibiting a higher rate of decrease in
the film width in the streamwise direction.

Fig. 8 Streamwise distribution of „a… film thickness at the cen- Fig. 10 Effects of inclination angle on film thickness and
ter plane and „b… surface film velocity at the center plane width

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 4.1.2 Effects of Liquid Flow Rate. The results that are pre-
sented in Figs. 6#a$ and 6#b$ illustrate the influence of film flow
rate and surface tension on the streamwise distribution of the film
width. The rate of decrease in the film width in the streamwise
direction increases as the surface tension increases or as the film
flow rate decreases. The rapid decrease in the width of the film
that has a higher surface tension ends within the computational
domain but that is not the case for the film that has a lower surface
tension. The results in Fig. 7 illustrate the influence of film flow
rate on the film thickness and width at x = 138.1 mm #ML$. A
thicker and wider film develops for higher film flow rate and a
film with a flatter film thickness profile and with a larger film
width develops for lower surface tension. The effects of film flow
rate on film width are more pronounced for films with higher
surface tension. At the plane where measurements are made, i.e.,
at x = 138.1 mm #ML$, the film has a uniform thickness in the
center region of the film width.
Streamwise distributions of film thickness and film surface ve-
locity at the spanwise center of the film width #plane of symme-
try$ are presented in Figs. 8#a$ and 8#b$. The results show that
these two variables #film thickness and film surface velocity$
change rapidly in the neighborhood of the injection region but
approach asymptotically constant values in the flow region where
the film width is decreasing in the streamwise direction. In that
region, the two variables are not affected by the surface tension
but with higher magnitude for higher film flow rate. When the two
side ripples start to overlap each other at the spanwise center of
the film, the film width ceases to change rapidly but the film
thickness and surface velocity at the spanwise center of film start
to increase sharply. The centerline film thickness and film surface
velocity remains constant in streamwise direction for films with
lower surface tension because the side ripples do not overlap
within the computational domain. Films with the higher surface
tension, the region with constant centerline film thickness and film
surface velocity ends once the side ripples start to overlap each
other at the spanwise center of the film within the calculation
domain. When the side ripples start to overlap each other, the
centerline thickness and surface velocity start to increase rapidly
as shown in the figures. For the center region of the film width and
in the region where the centerline film thickness is constant in the Fig. 11 Visualized and computed film flow domain „a… "
streamwise direction, the flow behaves similar to a fully devel- = 0.042 N / m and „b… " = 0.026 N / m
oped 2D film flow. In that region, the film thickness is not affected
by the surface tension. That observation led us to compare the
simulated 3D centerline results #film thickness and velocity distri- 4.1.3 Effects of Gravitational Force. The effects of gravita-
bution$ at the measuring plane of x = 138.1 mm with the available tional force on film thickness and width are presented in Fig. 10.
closed form solution for fully developed 2D gravity-driven film A higher inclination angle is associated with a higher gravitational
flow !24". The analytical expressions for this closed-form solution force, which results in a higher film velocity but a smaller film
are given below. thickness and width. The effect of gravitational force on the film

%
3
thickness and film width is more pronounced for films with lower
3' f Q surface tension. The effect of gravitational force on film thickness
hf = #1$
* f gW f sin ) becomes negligible when the inclination angle of the surface is
between 60 deg and 90 deg.
* f g sin ) 4.2 Comparison Between Simulations and Measurements.
V#y$ = !y#2h f − y$" #2$
2' f Global views of the liquid film width distribution in the stream-
wise direction are presented for steady film volume flow rate of
The maximum film velocity occurs at the liquid-air interface and
Q = 9.66 cm3 / s in Fig. 11#a$ for " = 0.042 N / m and in Fig. 11#b$
it is given by
for " = 0.026 N / m. The views were obtained using a digital cam-
* f gh2f sin ) era, which was placed parallel to the inclined surface. The quali-
V#y$&max = #3$ tative features of both the camera image and simulation results are
2' f very similar to each other and the effect of surface tension on the
Comparison of the two sets of results is shown in Figs. 9#a$ and streamwise distribution of the film width can be clearly seen in
9#b$ and excellent agreement exists between them. It is encourag- these figures. Films with higher surface tension are associated
ing to see that not only the values at film surface match very well with higher rate of decrease in film width in the streamwise direc-
with each other but also that the film velocity profile throughout tion. The image of the film with the higher surface tension #Fig.
the film thickness does so. The excellent agreement between the 11#a$$ captures more clearly the ripples that develop at the outer
two results validate the capability of VOF model for simulating edges of the film width. This image also captures part of the flow
the thin film flow characteristics and also validates the interface region where the two side ripples start to overlap each other at the
criterion as selected in the VOF model as being at the location, spanwise center of the film width.
where the liquid volume fraction #! f $ is equal to 0.5. Measured and simulated film width at x = 138.1 mm #ML$ are

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 Fig. 12 Comparison between measured and simulated film
width „a… " = 0.042 N / m and „b… " = 0.026 N / m
presented in Fig. 12#a$ for " = 0.042 N / m and in Fig. 12#b$ for
" = 0.026 N / m as a function of flow rate for various inclination
angles. Generally, the comparisons show that the simulated results
and measurements are in reasonable agreement with each other
for the effects of flow rate, gravity, and surface tension on film
width. The simulated results, however, systematically over-
predicts the measured values. Several possible factors that might
contribute to this difference include the small surface imperfec-
tions on the test aluminum test surface and the differences that
might exist between the static and the dynamic contact angle. The
effect of inclination angle on film width are more pronounced for
fluids with a lower surface tension while the effects of film flow
rate on film width are more pronounced for fluids with a higher
surface tension. Based on the repeatability of the measurements,
the uncertainty in measured film width is 1.27 mm. The compari-
sons between measured and simulated results at the ML are better
for fluids with lower surface tension. Fluids with lower surface
tension have flatter film surface and a wider region with a flat film
surface because the film can spread easier as compared with the
film with higher surface tension. For the same reason, fluids with
lower surface tension develop smaller ripples at the edge of the
film width, thus, resulting in smaller film surface angles in that
region and this improves the accuracy and the repeatability of the
measurements as compared with the fluids that have a higher sur-
face tension.
The measured and simulated film thickness at x = 138.1 mm
#ML$ are presented in Fig. 13#a$ for ) = 60 deg and in Fig. 13#b$
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Fig. 13 Comparison between measured and simulated film
thickness „a… ! = 60 deg and „b… ! = 30 deg and ! = 90 deg
for ) = 30 deg and ) = 90 deg. The measured results that are pre-
sented are average values from multiple measurements at the
same condition. The agreement between measured and simulated
results is quite good, considering the uncertainties in both the
measurements and in the modeling. Some of these uncertainties
are in film thickness measurements at the side edges of film and
are caused by the relatively steep surface film angle #relative to
substrate plane$ that develops in that region. Film surface angles
that develop in that region are between 4 deg and 15 deg and this
could result in a significant thickness measurement uncertainty by
the LFD instrument. This uncertainty in the measurements in-
creases as the surface tension increases due to the resulting in-
crease in the film surface angle at side edges of the film. Other
uncertainties are in the magnitude of surface tension and in the
contact angle that are used as input to the simulation. The uncer-
tainty in film thickness measurements is (38 'm at the side
edges of the film, where surface film angle is smaller than 6 deg,
and it is (9 'm in the central region of the film width, where the
film surface angle is close to 0 deg. The uncertainty in the film
thickness is significantly higher due to the high film surface angles
#between 6 deg' 15 deg$ that develop at the side edges of the
film due to the loss in reflected power, so that the reliability of the
LFD instrument in measuring film thickness deteriorate in that
situation. The measured and simulated results #film thickness and
width$ exhibit similar trends and show good agreement with both
magnitude and distribution #excluding the rippled region at the
AUGUST 2010, Vol. 132 / 081301-7
 side edges of the film$. This favorable agreement validates the use
of the VOF model for simulating the general flow behavior of
gravity-driven thin liquid films that are similar to one considered
in this study.
5 Conclusions
Three-dimensional steady-developing-laminar-isothermal- and
gravity-driven thin liquid film flow adjacent to an inclined plane
surface #film has side contact lines with substrate surface only$ is
studied and the effects of liquid flow rate, inclination angle, and
surface tension on the film width and thickness are reported. The
film thickness and width are measured using an LFD instrument
and these measurements serve as verification of the numerical
model #VOF$ used in the computations. The film width decreases
in the streamwise direction due to the effect of surface tension that
tends to minimize the film surface area. The rate of the decrease in
the film width in the streamwise direction is higher for films with
higher surface tension; for films having a lower flow rate; and for
films flowing over a surface that has a smaller inclination angle.
The effects of film flow rate on film width are more pronounced
for films with higher surface tension while the effects of surface
inclination angle on film width are more pronounced for films
with lower surface tension. A lower film flow rate or a greater
surface inclination angle results in smaller film thickness and
width. A higher surface film velocity is associated with higher film
flow rate and higher surface inclination angle. Two ripples de-
velop in the spanwise distribution of the film thickness at the outer
edges of its width and the height of these ripples is greater for
fluids with higher surface tension. Measured film thickness and
width compare favorably with simulated results. The measure-
ments at the spanwise center of the film, where the film surface is
approximately flat, compare very well with simulated values. The
film exhibits a long streamwise region where its thickness at the
centerline is independent of surface tension and in that center
region of the film the 3D simulated thickness and transverse ve-
locity distributions are almost identical to those obtained from the
2D analytical closed-form solution. The good comparisons be-
tween measured and simulated results in the spanwise direction as
well as between the analytical closed-form solution and the simu-
lated results in the center region validate the use of the of the VOF
model for simulating comparable 3D gravity-driven thin film
flows.
Acknowledgment
This work was supported in part by the DOE-Basic Energy
Sciences under Grant No. DE-FG02-03ER46067 and by the NSF
under Grant No. CTS-0352135.
Nomenclature
a + angle of film surface relative to horizontal
direction
h f + film thickness
g + gravity acceleration
ML + measurement location
' + molecular viscosity
Q + liquid film volume flow rate
V + film velocity #in streamwise direction$
W f + film width
x + streamwise coordinate
y + transverse coordinate
z + spanwise coordinate
Greek Symbols
! + volume fraction
081301-8 / Vol. 132, AUGUST 2010
Downloaded From: https://fluidsengineering.asmedigitalcollection.asme.org on 08/19/2019 Terms of Use: http://www.asme.org/about-asme/terms-of-use
) + inclination angle of test channel
# + local curvature of air-liquid interface
* + density
$w + contact angle #or wall contact angle$
" + surface tension
Subscripts
f + film #liquid phase$
g + gas #gas phase$
w + wall
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