Simulations of viscous shape relaxation in shuffled foam clusters

TL;DR

This paper uses 2D Potts Model simulations to study how foam clusters relax their shapes over time, reproducing experimental exponential relaxation behavior through bubble rearrangements caused by shear strain and wall fluctuations.

Contribution

It introduces a simulation approach that captures the exponential shape relaxation of foam cavities, linking bubble dynamics to macroscopic shape changes.

Findings

Reproduces exponential relaxation of cavity shapes in foam clusters.

Shows bubble rearrangements driven by shear strain and wall fluctuations.

Demonstrates the effectiveness of 2D Potts Model in foam dynamics simulation.

Abstract

We simulate the shape relaxation of foam clusters and compare them with the time exponential expected for Newtonian fluid. Using two-dimensional Potts Model simulations, we artificially create holes in a foam cluster and shuffle it by applying shear strain cycles. We reproduce the experimentally observed time exponential relaxation of cavity shapes in the foam as a function of the number of strain steps. The cavity rounding up results from local rearrangement of bubbles, due to the conjunction of both a large applied strain and local bubble wall fluctuations.