Abstract
Aerodynamic effects on the breakup of liquid jets in the air flow normal to the jet axis have been studied. A characteristic equation for the growth rate of disturbances is theoretically derived on the assumption that disturbances in the liquid are symmetric about the jet axis and those in the surrounding air are non-symmetric. The numerical analysis of the equation predicts that the maximum growth rate increases with the Weber number based on the density of air. The breakup length was measured by the ejection of water, ethanol and aqueous glycerol solution from a nozzle, whose axis was normal to the direction of air flow. The experimental breakup length agrees with the theoretical one in the region of air velocities less than 500 cm/sec, where the disintegration of jets by symmetric disturbances is observed and the assumption of the jet normal to the air flow appears reasonable.
