CFD Study on Effects of Geometric Shape and Surface Hydrophilicity and Hydrophobicity on the Drainage Capacity of Plant Leaves

• Main Authors: Yong Nam Yun, Chao Wu
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: EDP Sciences 2019-01-01
• Series: MATEC Web of Conferences
• Subjects: CFD; Drainage capacity; Leaf; Geometry; Hydrophilicity; Hydrophobicity
• Online Access: https://www.matec-conferences.org/articles/matecconf/pdf/2019/24/matecconf_acem2019_01008.pdf

The photosynthesis process of plant requires fast removal of surface contaminant of leaves. The removal of surface contaminants is highly related to the drainage capacity of the leaf. This paper conducted a comprehensive study on the drainage capacity of plant leaves. The effects of both leaf shape and leaf hydrophilicity/hydrophobicity are investigated. This paper uses Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) technology to simulate the drainage process of plant leaves. The numerical simulation results indicate that hydrophilic leaves requires the sharp parts on the edges to remove the water. On the other hand, the drainage capacity of hydrophobic leaves is independent of the shape of the leaves.