Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42653519›Full record

ArticleMicromachines2026

Corona-Driven Microdroplet Coalescence on an Open Oil Film with Intelligent Detection and Tracking.

Xinyi Qiu, Xiaxia Cui, Yiqing Liu, Hui Liu, Biao Cheng, Jiahan Zhang, Qiang Tang

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Micromachines, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Xinyi QiuSchool of Artificial Intelligence, Anhui University of Science and Technology, Huainan 232000, China.
Xiaxia CuiSchool of Artificial Intelligence, Anhui University of Science and Technology, Huainan 232000, China.
Yiqing LiuSchool of Artificial Intelligence, Anhui University of Science and Technology, Huainan 232000, China.
Hui LiuSchool of Artificial Intelligence, Anhui University of Science and Technology, Huainan 232000, China.
Biao ChengSchool of Artificial Intelligence, Anhui University of Science and Technology, Huainan 232000, China.
Jiahan ZhangSchool of Electronic Information Engineering, Inner Mongolia University, Hohhot 010021, China.ORCID 0000-0002-7319-9909
Qiang TangSchool of Artificial Intelligence, Anhui University of Science and Technology, Huainan 232000, China.ORCID 0000-0003-0360-5526

Funding

Anhui Provincial Department of Education 2024AH050397
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Open-surface coalescence of microdroplets is essential for droplet-based microreactors, emulsion processing, and multiphase microfluidics, yet existing methods often require closed channels or patterned electrodes. Here, we report a corona-driven open-oil-film platform that achieves voltage-regulated coalescence of aqueous microdroplets in a simple needle-plate electrode configuration. Positive corona discharge induces coupled electrohydrodynamic effects-including ion transport, interfacial charge redistribution, and Maxwell stresses-that drive oil-film contraction and charge-regulated droplet bouncing, thereby reducing inter-droplet spacing and promoting successive merging. The coalescence rate and final droplet size are tunable via the applied voltage and oil volume: complete coalescence into a single droplet is achieved at 12 kV, and an optimal oil volume of 60 μL maximizes confinement efficiency. To enable quantitative, frame-by-frame analysis, we develop an improved YOLOv5-OC-SORT framework that yields an overall mAP@0.5 of 0.905 for automatic droplet detection and tracking. As a proof-of-concept, the platform achieves electro-demulsification of a surfactant-stabilized water-in-oil emulsion, increasing the average droplet diameter from ~0.005 mm to ~0.2 mm and enabling effective oil-water separation. This work provides a simple, electrode-pattern-free strategy for controllable droplet coalescence and open-surface emulsion breaking.

Indexed as

corona dischargedroplet trackingelectro-demulsificationelectrohydrodynamicsmicrodroplet coalescenceYOLOv5

Identifiers

PMID42653519
PMCPMC13515563

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.