Drop impact in a cavity

Drop impact on solid surfaces generates erosion in natural as well as in engineering processes. Yet, the physical understanding of erosion is still far from clear. This study aims at investigating how the geometry of the impacted surface may play a role in this process. We thus study experimentally and numerically the impact of a water drop onto a surface with a cylindrical cavity whose dimensions (diameter and depth) are comparable to the size of the impacting drop. We record simultaneously the dynamics of the drop using high-speed camera, and measure the temporal force profile exerted by the drop on the surface using a piezo-electric sensor. We show how the presence of a cavity changes notably the dynamics of the impacting drop, leading to higher stresses exerted on the surface.