2. Mechanisms involved in emulsification

Although the mechanisms of emulsification are not yet fully understood, we're a long way from the days when an anonymous apothecary claimed that emulsions should always be stirred counter-clockwise, discouraging his colleagues from recruiting left-handed assistants! Elementary emulsification processes involve at least two stages: the formation of relatively large droplets, including the initial formation of fluid films or cylinders and their break-up due to Rayleigh-Taylor and/or Kelvin-Helmholtz-type instabilities (§ 2.2.2 ), followed by the break-up of these droplets into smaller objects.