When working at the microscale, engineering structures like those used for drug delivery systems requires ingenuity. Since it isn’t possible to manipulate particles manually, researchers harness physical effects to do the work for them. Here a droplet filled with millions of polystyrene microparticles sits on a hydrophobic surface, which helps keep the drop’s spherical shape. As the drop evaporates, surface tension and internal flow in the drop help the microparticles self-assemble into a microscopic soccer-ball-like shape. (Video credit: A. Marin et al.; submission by A. Marin)
Category: Research
Watching the Boundary Layer Go By
In experiments, it can be difficult to track individual fluid structures as they flow downstream. Here researchers capture this spatial development by towing a 5-meter flat plate past a stationary camera while visualizing the boundary layer – the area close to the plate. The result is that we see turbulent eddies evolving as they advect downstream. Despite the complicated and seemingly chaotic flow field, the eye is able to pick out patterns and structure, like the merging of vortices that lifts eddies up into turbulent bulges and the entrainment of freestream fluid into the boundary layer as the eddies turn over or collapse. It is also a great demonstration of how the Reynolds number relates to the separation of scales in a turbulent flow. Notice how much richer the variety of length-scale is for the higher Reynolds number case and how thoroughly this mixes the boundary layer. (Video credit: J. H. Lee et al.)
Evaporation and Surface Effects
Surface properties can have surprising effects on fluid behavior. This image shows the evaporation of several droplets over time. All of the initial droplets are of the same volume, but they are placed on a surface which is a) superhydrophobic, b) hydrophobic, or c) hydrophilic. The more hydrophobic the surface, the larger the initial contact angle between the droplet and surface and the smaller the wetted area of the surface. Yet despite this seemingly large surface area exposure to air, the droplet on the superhydrophobic surface is the slowest to evaporate. (Photo credit: C. Choi)
Lifting Liquids
At very small scales, the interaction of solids and liquids is governed by molecular forces. Here researchers demonstrate how carbon nanowires of only a few nanometers in diameter draw liquid up in a film or bead when inserted in a pool. Capillary action is the name we give this gravity-defying force generated between the liquid and solid molecules. Although this behavior was predicted theoretically, it had not been previously observed at this scale due to the need for electron microscopy. Such microscopes require a vacuum, which boils off almost any liquid instantaneously. Researchers used a special fluid that remained in a liquid state even under near-vacuum pressures in order to make these observations. (Video credit: J. Li et al/MIT News; submitted by 20percentvitaminc)
Entering a Viscous Liquid
When a solid object impacts on a liquid a cavity typically forms, entraining air into the pool. But this behavior varies widely according to the surface of the solid as well as the fluid’s properties. This video shows a sphere impacting a highly viscous liquid. The sphere stops shortly after impact while the cavity continues expanding in its wake. With a fluid like water, a long and thin cavity will typically pinch off before the object is decelerated, causing bubbles to form. No such behavior here. Instead the wide cavity pinches off at the surface of the motionless sphere and begins its rebound upwards. It even appears to pull the sphere partially back towards the surface! (Video credit: A. Le Goff et al.)
Turning Sound Into Imagery
The acoustic signatures of many animals contain features we humans cannot appreciate, given the limited range of frequencies we can hear. In fluid dynamics and many other fields, scientists and engineers have to find ways to analyze and decompose time-series data–like acoustic pressure signals–into useful quantities. Mark Fischer uses one tool for such analysis, a wavelet transform, to turn the calls of whales, birds, and insects into the colorful snapshots seen here. Wavelet transforms are somewhat similar to Fourier transforms but represent a signal with a series of wavelets rather than sinusoids. They’re also widely used for data compression. (Image credits: M. Fischer/Aguasonic Acoustics; via DailyMail)
Explosions Underwater
Underwater explosions are, in general, much more dangerous than those in air. This video shows an underwater blast at 30,000 fps. During the initial blast, a hot sphere of gas expands outward in a shock wave. In air, some of the energy of this pressure wave would be dissipated by compressing the air. Since water is incompressible, however, the blast instead moves water aside as the bubble expands. Eventually, the bubble expands to the point where its pressure is less than that of the water around it, which causes the bubble to collapse. But the collapse increases the gas pressure once more, kicking off a series of expansions and collapses. Each bubble contains less energy than the previous, thanks to the loss of pushing the water aside. (Video credit: K. Kitagawa)
Imitating Flapping Flight
Flapping flight, despite being utilized by creatures of many sizes in nature, remains remarkably difficult to engineer. In this experiment, a simple rectangular wing is flapped up and down sinusoidally. Above a critical flapping frequency, the wing–which is free to rotate–accelerates from rest to a constant speed. This rotation is equivalent to forward flight. The upper image shows a photo and schematic of the setup, while the lower images shows flow visualization of the wing’s wake. The wing moves to the right, shedding thrust-providing periodic vortices in its wake. (Photo credits: N. Vandenberge et al.)
Shocking Droplets
Typical liquid drops will break apart into long, stretched ligaments and a spray of tiny droplets when deformed. But with just a small addition of polymers, these same liquids become viscoelastic and capable of some pretty incredible behaviors. This video shows a viscoelastic drop being struck by a shock wave that passes from right to left. The droplet is smashed and deformed, then stretches into jellyfish-like sheet of liquid. But incredibly, the elastic forces in the droplet are enough to hold it together. Researchers are interested in understanding these behaviors for many applications, including preventing accidental explosions caused by explosive fuels atomizing in air. (Video credit: T. Theofanous et al.)
Bouncing to Mix Oil and Water
Mixing immiscible liquids–like oil and water–is tough. The best one can usually do is create an emulsion, in which droplets of one fluid are suspended in another. The series of images above shows a double emulsion consisting of oil and water that’s been formed by bouncing the compound droplet on a vibrating bath. The vibration of the liquid surface keeps the droplet from coalescing with the bath and the deformation provides mixing. The top row shows the initial impact while the bottom row of images shows the droplet after many bounces. As time goes on, the layer of oil around the compound drop becomes a cluster of tiny droplets contained within the water portion of the drop. (Photo credit: D. Terwagne et al.)
