https://doi.org/10.1140/epjst/e2011-01467-2
Regular Article
Dynamics of wetting and Kramers’ theory
University of Mons, Laboratory of Surface and Interfacial Physics, 20 place du Parc, 7000 Mons, Belgium
a e-mail: joel.de.coninck@umons.ac.be
Received:
2
June
2011
Revised:
15
June
2011
Published online:
30
August
2011
We investigate the potential link between Kramer’s treatment of rate processes and the molecular-kinetic theory of wetting. The results of recent large-scale simulations of dynamic wetting are used to illustrate and validate our analysis. We find that both theories predict that, for a given driving force, the velocity of the contact line is inversely proportional to the viscosity. They also predict that the velocity will depend with a negative exponent on the strength of solid-liquid interactions, which for simple systems can be represented to good approximation by the reversible work of adhesion Wa0.
© EDP Sciences, Springer-Verlag, 2011
