arXiv subjects

Marc Durand

Publications and source records attributed to Marc Durand.

24 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2010

Structure of Optimal Transport Networks Subject to a Global Constraint

The structure of pipe networks minimizing the total energy dissipation rate is studied analytically. Among all the possible pipe networks that can be built with a given total pipe volume (or pipe lateral surface area), the network which minimizes the dissipation rate is shown to be loopless. Furthermore, such an optimal network is shown to contain at most N-2 nodes in addition to the N sources plus sinks that it connects. These results are valid whether the possible locations for the additional nodes are chosen freely or from a set of nodes (such as points of a grid). Applications of these results to various physical situations and to the efficient computation of optimal pipe networks are also discussed.

cond-mat.dis-nn↗

arXiv2010

Statistical Mechanics of Two-dimensional Foams

The methods of statistical mechanics are applied to two-dimensional foams under macroscopic agitation. A new variable -- the total cell curvature -- is introduced, which plays the role of energy in conventional statistical thermodynamics. The probability distribution of the number of sides for a cell of given area is derived. This expression allows to correlate the distribution of sides ("topological disorder") to the distribution of sizes ("geometrical disorder") in a foam. The model predictions agree well with available experimental data.

cond-mat.soft↗

arXiv2006

Relaxation time of the topological T1 process in a two-dimensional foam

The elementary topological T1 process in a two-dimensional foam corresponds to the "flip" of one soap film with respect to the geometrical constraints. From a mechanical point of view, this T1 process is an elementary relaxation process through which the entire structure of an out-of-equilibrium foam evolves. The dynamics of this elementary relaxation process has been poorly investigated and is generally neglected during simulations of foams. We study both experimentally and theoretically the T1 dynamics in a dry two-dimensional foam. We show that the dynamics is controlled by the surface viscoelastic properties of the soap films (surface shear plus dilatational viscosity, ms+k, and Gibbs elasticity e), and is independent of the shear viscosity of the bulk liquid. Moreover, our approach illustrates that the dynamics of T1 relaxation process provides a convenient tool for measuring the surface rheological properties: we obtained e = 32+/-8 mN/m and ms+k = 1.3+/-0.7 mPa.m.s for SDS, and e = 65+/-12 mN/m and ms+k = 31+/-12 mPa.m.s for BSA, in good agreement with values reported in the literature.

cond-mat.soft↗

arXiv2005

Optimizing transport in a homogeneous network

Many situations in physics, biology, and engineering consist of the transport of some physical quantity through a network of narrow channels. The ability of a network to transport such a quantity in every direction can be described by the average conductivity associated with. When the flow through each channel is conserved and derives from a potential function, we show that there exist an upper bound of the average conductivity, and explicitly give the expression for this upper bound as a function of the channel permeability and channel length distributions. Moreover, we express the necessary and sufficient conditions on the network structure to maximize the average conductivity. These conditions are found to be independent of the connectivity of the vertices.

nlin.AO↗

arXiv2005

Architecture of optimal transport networks

We analyze the structure of networks minimizing the global resistance to flow (or dissipated energy) with respect to two different constraints: fixed total channel volume and fixed total channel surface area. First, we determine the shape of channels in such optimal networks and show that they must be straight with uniform cross-sectional areas. Then, we establish a relation between the cross-sectional areas of adjoining channels at each junction. Indeed, this relation is a generalization of Murray's law, originally established in the context of local optimization. Moreover, we establish a relation between angles and cross-sectional areas of adjoining channels at each junction, which can be represented as a vectorial force balance equation, where the force weight depends on the channel cross-sectional area. A scaling law between the minimal resistance value and the total volume or surface area value is also derived from the analysis. Furthermore, we show that no more than three or four channels meet in one junction of optimal bi-dimensional networks, depending on the flow profile (e.g.: Poiseuille-like or plug-like) and the considered constraint (fixed volume or surface area). In particular, we show that sources are directly connected to wells, without intermediate junctions, for minimal resistance networks preserving the total channel volume in case of plug flow regime. Finally, all these results are illustrated with a simple example, and compared with the structure of natural networks.

nlin.AO↗

arXiv2005

Optimizing the bulk modulus of cellular networks

We present an alternative derivation of upper-bounds for the bulk modulus of both two-dimensional and three-dimensional cellular materials. For two-dimensional materials, we recover exactly the expression of the Hashin-Shtrikman (HS) upper-bound in the low-density limit, while for three-dimensional materials we even improve the HS bound. Furthermore, we establish necessary and sufficient conditions on the cellular structure for maximizing the bulk modulus, for a given solid volume fraction. These conditions are found to be exactly those under which the electrical (or thermal) conductivity of the material reaches its maximal value as well. These results provide a set of straightforward criteria allowing to address the design of optimized cellular materials, and shed light on recent studies of structures with both maximal bulk modulus and maximal conductivity. Finally, we discuss the compatibility of the criteria presented here with the geometrical constraints caused by minimization of surface energy in a real foam.

nlin.AO↗