Molecular dynamics simulations of the nano-droplet impact process on hydrophobic surfaces

Large-scale molecular dynamics simulations are used to study the dynamic processes of a nano-droplet impacting on hydrophobic surfaces at a microscopic level. Both the impact phenomena and the velocity distributions are recorded and analyzed. According to the simulation results, similar phenomena are obtained to those in macro-experiments. Impact velocity affects the spread process to a greater degree than at a level of contact angle when the velocity is relatively high. The velocity distribution along the X axis during spread is wave-like, either W- or M-shaped, and the velocity at each point is oscillatory; while the edges have the highest spread velocity and there are crests in the distribution curve which shift toward the edges over time. The distribution along the Y axis is <- or >-shaped, and the segments above the middle have the lowest decrease rate in the spreading process and the highest increase rate in the retraction process. (electromagnetism, optics, acoustics, heat transfer, classical mechanics, and fluid dynamics)