• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers B
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• v.26 no.10
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• pp.1451-1457
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• 2002

When an aqueous liquid such as water having high electric conductivity and high surface tension is discharged from a nozzle under a strong DC electric field, fine drops ranging from 30 to 450 microns can be obtained only through the spindle mode. In the present study, effects of the electric conductivity and the surface wettability of nozzle materials on formation of drops with this mode were investigated. For that, three nozzles with the same size but with different materials were prepared and tested; a stainless steel needle, and a plain and a metal (gold)-coated (except for the tip portion) silica needles. Uniform drops were obtained with the gold-coated silica nozzle over the wider range of the DC voltage input. That is, formation of the liquid cone and detachment of the liquid spindle (ligament) can be more stabilized and frequent with the needles having high electric conductivity but with low surface wettability at their tips.