Droplet Chemistry: Superwetting, Evaporation and Applications

Dear Colleagues,

Seemingly simple droplets are microcosms of complex chemistry and physics at various interfaces, involving heat/mass transfer, thermodynamics, and colloid science. Manipulating droplet behaviors, such as through superwetting (using nano/micro-textured substrates, particle-coated liquids, and chemical functionalization) or evaporation control (by adjusting heat transfer, local flow field, material redistribution, and colloidal assembly), offers transformative potential for various practical applications like electronic tattoos, precision agriculture, textile dyeing, inkjet printing, and surface coatings.

This Special Issue invites cutting-edge research on droplet manipulation via engineered superwetting or controlled evaporation dynamics. We welcome original research and reviews that advance the fundamental understanding of droplet manipulation and enable innovative applications. Research areas may include (but are not limited to) the following:

1. Fundamentals of Droplet Interfaces and Phenomena: Theoretical and experimental studies on the underlying physics and chemistry of droplets, including interfacial thermodynamics, wetting fundamentals, evaporation dynamics, evaporation-induced crystal nucleation, and the generation and release of internal stress.
2. Engineering Droplet Superwetting: Design, fabrication, characterization, and application of nano/micro-textured surfaces, particle-laden liquids (liquid marbles and Pickering emulsions), chemical functionalization, and other strategies to achieve extreme wettability states (superhydrophobic, superhydrophilic, omniphobic, etc.).
3. Controlling Evaporation Dynamics: Manipulating evaporation rates, heat/mass transfer processes, internal flow fields (e.g., the coffee-ring effect/Marangoni effect), solute/colloidal transport, deposition patterns, crystallization, and final deposit formation in drying droplets. This includes methods like external fields (thermal, electrical, and acoustic), substrate engineering, and environmental control.
4. AI-Assisted Design of Droplet Manipulation: Machine learning and generative AI accelerate the optimization of superwetting surfaces and the prediction of complex evaporation dynamics (e.g., flow fields and deposition patterns). These tools enable the inverse design of droplet-based systems for tailored performance, bridging fundamental mechanisms and practical applications.
5. Advanced Applications Enabled by Manipulation: Demonstrating the practical impact of superwetting and/or evaporation control in specific application domains. For example, precision agriculture (spraying), functional coatings, printed/flexible electronics (inkjet and e-tattoos), microfabrication, lab-on-a-chip diagnostics, biomedical devices, smart textiles (dyeing), and energy devices.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. Ruoyang Chen
Prof. Dr. Xiaoguang Li
Dr. Panagiotis Theodorakis
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Molecules is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.