Frederik Brasz '09, Boston University

Interfacial fluid flows like splashing raindrops and rising bubbles are familiar from everyday life, but also relevant to many processes in the environment and industry. The bursting of bubbles entrained by breaking waves in the oceans ejects jets of aerosol droplets that affect cloud formation and climate, and can also transmit pathogens. Liquid jets can also be generated by focusing a laser pulse into a thin film of ink and used for a nozzle-free printing technique. Finally, rising swarms of bubbles are being studied as a tool for mitigation of biofouling for ships. I will present high-speed imaging experiments and numerical simulations of the fluid flows in these examples, exploring how they depend on the interplay between surface tension, inertia, viscosity, and gravity.