Marangoni spreading due to a localized alcohol supply on a thin water film

Abstract

Bringing the interfaces of two miscible fluids into contact naturally generates strong gradients in surface tension. Here we investigate such a Marangoni-driven flow by continuously supplying isopropyl alcohol (IPA) on a film of water, using micron-sized droplets of IPA-water mixtures. These droplets create a localized depression in surface tension that leads to the opening of a circular and thin region in the water film. At the edge of the thin region, there is a rim growing and collecting the water of the film. We find that the spreading radius scales as $r \sim t^{1/2}$. This result can be explained from a balance between Marangoni and viscous stresses, assuming that the gradients in surface tension are smoothened out over the entire size of the circular opening. We derive a scaling law that accurately predicts the influence of the IPA flux as well as the thickness of the thin film at the interior of the spreading front.