Molecular dynamics simulations of droplet evaporation

The complete evaporation of a three-dimensional submicron droplet under subcritical conditions has been modeled using molecular dynamics. The two-phase system consisted of 2048 argon atoms modeled using a Lennard-Jones 12-6 potential distributed between a single droplet and its surrounding vapor. The system was first allowed to relax to equilibrium, then the droplet was evaporated by increasing the temperature of the vapor phase atoms at the boundaries of the system until only the vapor phase remained. The computed evaporation rate agrees with that predicted by the Knudsen aerosol theory.