The Physics of Flowing Emulsions in Wall-Bounded Turbulence

Emulsions are common in both natural and industrial contexts, and recently, significant attention has been directed toward understanding the dynamics of turbulent emulsions. In this talk, we discuss recent studies of emulsions in wall-bounded turbulent Taylor–Couette flow, focusing on the statistics of the dispersed phase and the system’s global momentum transport. First, we examine the size distribution and breakup mechanisms of dispersed droplets in turbulent emulsions with a low volume fraction of the dispersed phase. For systems with a high volume fraction of the dispersed phase, we explore the response of global momentum transport in the turbulent emulsion and its connection to droplet statistics. Finally, we discuss catastrophic phase inversions, which can occur when the dispersed phase volume fraction exceeds a critical value during dynamic emulsification.