Prediction of the morphological evolution of a splashing drop using an encoder–decoder

The impact of a drop on a solid surface is an important phenomenon that has various implications and applications. However, the multiphase nature of this phenomenon causes complications in the prediction of its morphological evolution, especially when the drop splashes. While most machine-learning-based drop-impact studies have centred around physical parameters, this study used a computer-vision strategy by training an encoder–decoder to predict the drop morphologies using image data. Herein, we show that this trained encoder–decoder is able to successfully generate videos that show the morphologies of splashing and non-splashing drops. Remarkably, in each frame of these generated videos, the spreading diameter of the drop was found to be in good agreement with that of the actual videos. Moreover, there was also a high accuracy in splashing/non-splashing prediction. These findings demonstrate the ability of the trained encoder–decoder to generate videos that can accurately represent the drop morphologies. This approach provides a faster and cheaper alternative to experimental and numerical studies.