Mini-review of the microscale phenomena during emulsification of highly concentrated emulsions
Kashala Fabrice Kapiamba
Abstract
Droplet dismembering has been a research topic in several fields. This phenomenon mainly occurs because of the velocity gradient between the continuous medium and dispersed particles. Herein, we discuss droplet deformation and breakup in highly concentrated emulsions (HCEs); beginning with a brief overview of studies focusing on a single isolated droplet. Droplet breakup is often assumed to be governed by the capillary number . However, the latter may not be applicable to HCEs, as these viscoplastic media are primarily characterized by the yield stress and elastic modulus. These parameters determine the strength of the microstructure of HCEs and have been considered in droplet breakup models owing to the recent advancements in their rheology. Finally, remarks on the recent introduction of the Bingham number and elasticity number in the replacement of the capillary number, which account for viscoplasticity and the resulting stability criterion under shear, and the importance of these models have also been discussed.