Turbulent shearing of crude oil mixed with dispersants generates long microthreads and microdroplets.

Using cinematic digital holography, we demonstrate that turbulent breakup of crude oil mixed with dispersants into microdroplets starts with the formation of very long and quite stable, single or multiple microthreads that trail behind 300-1400 microm droplets. These threads extend from Reynolds number dependent regions with high surfactant concentration, which, along with associated viscosities and stretching by turbulence stabilizes the threads. The subsequent breakup, producing 2.8 microm droplets, is due to an increasing surface area and diffusion of dispersants into the continuous phase.