  Liquid droplets hanging from solid surfaces are commonplace, but their
physics is complex. Examples include dew or raindrops hanging onto wires or
droplets accumulating onto a cover placed over warm food or windshields. In
these scenarios, determining the force of detachment is crucial to rationally
design technologies. Despite much research, a quantitative theoretical
framework for detachment force remains elusive. In response, we interrogated
the elemental droplet surface system via comprehensive laboratory and
computational experiments. The results reveal that the Young Laplace equation
can be utilized to accurately predict the droplet detachment force. When
challenged against experiments with liquids of varying properties and droplet
sizes, detaching from smooth and microtextured surfaces of wetting and non
wetting chemical makeups, the predictions were in an excellent quantitative
agreement. This study advances the current understanding of droplet physics and
will contribute to the rational development of technologies.
