Bubble rising in the presence of a surfactant at very low concentrations

This paper analyzes experimentally and numerically the steady bubble rising in water with a surfactant dissolved at very low concentrations. We explain how traces of surfactant can significantly change the bubble dynamics. The tiny surface tension variation produced by the surfactant monolayer has a negligible effect on the capillary pressure. However, this variation occurs within an extremely thin diffusive boundary layer, which produces a Marangoni stress three orders of magnitude larger than the tangential viscous stress in a surfactant-free bubble. Although the Marangoni stress is confined within the surface boundary layer, it manages to immobilize most of the bubble's south hemisphere. The increase in skin friction and the reduction of the terminal velocity cannot be attributed to the viscous stress exerted on the immobilized interface but to the stress in the diffusive surface boundary layer. The stagnant-cap approximation applies despite the small surfactant concentration considered.