Ruiz-Gutierrez, ElfegoArmstrong, StevenLeveque, SimonMichel, CelestinPagonabarraga, IgnacioWells, Gary G.Hernandez-Machado, AuroraLedesma-Aguilar, Rodrigo2022-04-252022-04-252022-04-252022-03-3110.1017/jfm.2022.248https://infoscience.epfl.ch/handle/20.500.14299/187372WOS:000776272000001Spontaneous capillary imbibition is a classical problem in interfacial fluid dynamics with a broad range of applications, from microfluidics to agriculture. Here we study the duration of the cross-over between an initial linear growth of the imbibition front to the diffusive-like growth limit of Washburn's law. We show that local-resistance sources, such as the inertial resistance and the friction caused by the advancing meniscus, always limit the motion of an imbibing front. Both effects give rise to a cross-over of the growth exponent between the linear and the diffusive-like regimes. We show how this cross-over is much longer than previously thought - even longer than the time it takes the liquid to fill the porous medium. Such slowly slowing-down dynamics is likely to cause similar long cross-over phenomena in processes governed by wetting.MechanicsPhysics, Fluids & PlasmasPhysicsporous mediawetting and wickingcapillary flowscontact-anglerisetubesflowliquidspenetrationtransitionkineticsscalestext::journal::journal article::research article