Experimental and Numerical Study of the Motion of a Liquid Pouring from a Beverage Can

Abstract

The motion of a liquid pouring from a beverage can is experimentally and numerically studied. First, we measure pouring motion for sixteen examinees and find that the can motion in pouring consists of three stages; tipping stage, filling stage, and returning stage. In each stage, the angular velocity of a can is nearly constant, and its average velocity is obtained. A liquid flow from a can rotating at the average angular velocity is visualized with high-speed cameras and is also numerically simulated with the Volume of Fluid (VOF) method. At the beginning of pouring, the liquid from a can opening is once blocked by the rim of a upper lid and then flows over the rim. It falls from the can forming a V-shaped surface, which converges few centimeters below the rim expanding the liquid surface in the direction perpendicular to the V-shaped surface. This results in a wavy pattern of the liquid surface. The computational result agrees with the experiment.