Electrospray

The name electrospray is used for a device that employs electricity to disperse a liquid or for the fine aerosol resulting from this process. The method is sometimes improperly called electrohydrodynamic atomization. High voltage is applied to a liquid supplied through an emitter (usually a glass or metallic capillary). Ideally the liquid reaching the emitter tip forms a Taylor cone, which emits a liquid jet through its apex. Varicose waves on the surface of the jet lead to the formation of small and highly charged liquid droplets, which are radially dispersed due to Coulomb repulsion.