Magnetic Control of Ferrofluid Droplet Adhesion in Shear Flow and on Inclined Surfaces.

The manipulation of ferrofluidic droplets by magnetic fields is a popular technique for controlling fluid transport in open microfluidic systems. We examine the effect of gravity and shear flow external forces on the adhesion properties of sessile ferrofluidic droplets in the presence of a uniform magnetic field. The magnetic field was found to enhance the critical Bond number at which sliding begins on a tilting substrate but suppress the critical Weber number at which sliding begins in a moderate Reynolds number channel flow. The divergent adhesion trends are explained in terms of the shape deformation induced in the ferrofluidic droplet, the substrate wettability, and the apparent contact angle variation induced by the droplet deformation.