Effect of Microstructure Surfaces on the Wetting State and Impact Spreading Behavior of Molten Aluminum Droplets

The background of this study is the problem of adhesion of aluminum liquid on equipment walls during the production of electrolytic aluminum. The effect of surface microstructure on wettability conversion and spreading behavior is studied using the-volume-of-fluid method. The spreading process of aluminum molten droplets impacting microstructure and smooth surfaces with various surface wettability is compared. The curves of the spreading factor, the height factor, and the penetration depth of the microstructure as functions of time are obtained for various initial velocities of molten droplets. In addition, the maximum spreading factor and the initial velocity are proposed in the mathematical models of the time necessary for the molten drop to reach the maximum spreading factor and with the initial velocity.