Fizzy drinks like soda and champagne have many bubbles which rise to the surface before bursting. When the film separating the bubble and the air drains and bursts, it leaves a millimeter-sized cavity that collapses on itself. That collapse creates an upward jet of fluid which can break into tiny aerosol droplets that disperse the aroma and flavor of the drink. Similar bubble-bursting events occur in sea spray and industrial applications, too. Researchers find that droplet ejection depends on bubble geometry and fluid properties such as viscosity. More viscous liquids, for example, generate smaller and faster droplets. Learn more and see videos of bubble-bursts at Newswise. (Image credit: E. Ghabache et al.)
Tag: champagne
Champagne Bubble Physics
Champagne is well-known for its effervescence, but its tiny bubbles do more than affect your sensation when sipping. Champagne bubbles form when carbon dioxide dissolved in the wine nucleates along imperfections in the glass. Buoyancy causes them to flow upwards, growing as they pull more carbon dioxide from the surrounding champagne. When the bubbles reach the surface, they pop, sending an almost imperceptible fountain of tiny droplets into the air, as seen in the photo above. You can sometimes feel the droplets if you hold a glass near your face. The droplets released from the bursting champagne bubbles spread the aroma of the wine, imparting additional flavor through our olfactory sense. (Photo credit: F. Beaumont et al.)
The Science of Champagne
Champagne owes much of its allure to its tiny bubbles. Unlike other wines, champagne undergoes a secondary fermentation in the bottle, during which the yeasts in the wine consume sugars and produce carbon dioxide, which dissolves into the wine. When opened, the carbon dioxide can begin to escape. Bubbles form in the glass around imperfections, either due to intentional etching of the glass or impurities left behind by cleaning. Once formed, trails of bubbles rise to the surface, swelling as more dissolved carbon dioxide is absorbed into each bubble. The bubbles then cluster near the surface of the champagne, occasionally popping and creating a flower-like distortion of the surrounding bubbles. The gases within the bubbles contains higher concentrations of aromatic chemicals than the surrounding wine, and the bursting of each bubble propels tiny droplets of these aromatics upwards, carrying the scent of the champagne to the drinker. For more beautiful champagne photos, I recommend this LuxeryCulture article; for more on the science of champagne, see Chemistry World’s coverage. Happy 2014! (Image credits: G. Liger-Belair et al.)
