Nanodroplet condensation on solid surfaces

This work addresses droplet condensation on surfaces spanning hydrophobic to hydrophilic wettabilities. A stochastic mesoscale model based on the theory of fluctuating hydrodynamics and the thermodynamics of a diffuse interface approach shows how direct simulation of the vapor-liquid transition from the nucleation process to droplet hydrodynamics can be achieved. Such simulations explain the role of wettability in filmwise and dropwise condensation regimes and the main limitations of classical nucleation theory.