EPJ E Topical Review: Foaming experiments on the ISS

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Published on 24 March 2014

Foams and foaming processes pose interesting questions for both fundamental research and practical applications. Although foams are a familiar thing, both in our everyday lives and in industry, many aspects of foam physics and chemistry still remain unclear.

This EPJ E paper comprehensively reviews the studies of foams under microgravity, including studies conducted in parabolic flights, in sounding rockets and in the International Space Station.

Experiments on foams performed under microgravity can be extended far beyond the conditions of experiments carried out on Earth. In particular, when gravity is minimized, it is possible to observe the behaviour of wet foams obtained during the foaming process. On Earth, foams at this stage evolve too quickly due to gravity drainage and cannot be studied.