arXiv subjects

Tatiana V. Nizkaya

Publications and source records attributed to Tatiana V. Nizkaya.

13 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2022

Theoretical modeling of catalytic self-propulsion

Self-propelling particles or microswimmers have opened a new field of investigation with both fundamental and practical perspectives. They represent very convenient model objects for experimental studies of active matter, and have implications in nano-robotics, drug delivery, and more. Here, we summarize recent advances in theoretical description of the self-propulsion of catalytic microswimmers that non-uniformly release ions, including its physical origins and the current switch in focus to non-linear effects, geometric tuning and more. In particular, we show that the ionic self-propulsion always includes both diffusiophoretic and electrophoretic contributions, and that non-linear effects are physical causes of a number of intriguing phenomena, such as the reverse in the direction of the particle motion in response to variations of the salt concentration or self-propulsion of electro-neutral particles. We finally suggest several remaining theoretical challenges in the field.

cond-mat.soft↗

arXiv2022

Self-diffusiophoresis of Janus particles that release ions

Catalytic Janus swimmers demonstrate a diffusio-phoretic motion by self-generating the gradients of concentrations and electric potential. Recent work has focused on simplified cases, such as a release of solely one type of ions or low surface fluxes of ions, with limited theoretical guidance. Here, we consider the experimentally relevant case of particles that release both types of ions, and obtain a simple expression for a particle velocity in the limit of thin electrostatic diffuse layer. Our approximate expression is very accurate even when ion fluxes and surface potentials are large, and allows one to interpret a number of intriguing phenomena, such as the reverse in the direction of the particle motion in response to variations of the salt concentration or self-diffusiophoresis of uncharged particles.

cond-mat.soft↗

arXiv2021

Instability of particle inertial migration in shear flow

In a shear flow particles migrate to their equilibrium positions in the microchannel. Here we demonstrate theoretically that if particles are inertial, this equilibrium can become unstable due to the Saffman lift force. We derive an expression for the critical Stokes number that determines the onset of instable equilibrium. We also present results of lattice Boltzmann simulations for spherical particles and prolate spheroids to validate the analysis. Our work provides a simple explanation of several unusual phenomena observed in earlier experiments and computer simulations, but never interpreted before in terms of the unstable equilibrium.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2020

Inertial migration of oblate spheroids in a plane channel

We discuss an inertial migration of oblate spheroids in a plane channel, where steady laminar flow is generated by a pressure gradient. Our lattice Boltzmann simulations show that spheroids orient in the flow, so that their minor axis coincides with the vorticity direction (a log-rolling motion). Interestingly, for spheroids of moderate aspect ratios, the equilibrium positions relative to the channel walls depend only on their equatorial radius $a$. By analysing the inertial lift force we argue that this force is proportional to $a^3b$, where $b$ is the polar radius, and conclude that the dimensionless lift coefficient of the oblate spheroid does not depend on $b$, and is equal to that of the sphere of radius $a$.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2020

Flow-driven collapse of lubricant-infused surfaces

Lubricant-infused surfaces in an outer liquid flow generally reduce viscous drag. However, owing to the meniscus deformation, the infused state could collapse. Here we discuss the transition between infused and collapsed states of transverse shallow grooves, considering the capillary number, liquid/lubricant viscosity ratio and aspect ratio of the groove as parameters for inducing this transition. It is found that depending on the depth of the grooves, two different scenarios occur. A collapse of lubricant-infused surfaces could happen due to a depinning of the meniscus from the front groove edge. However, for very shallow textures, the meniscus contacts the bottom wall before such a depinning could occur. Our interpretation could help avoiding this generally detrimental effect in various applications.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2019

Inertial migration of neutrally-buoyant particles in superhydrophobic channels

At finite Reynolds numbers particles migrate across flow streamlines to their equilibrium positions in microchannels. Such a migration is attributed to an inertial lift force, and it is well-known that the equilibrium location of neutrally-buoyant particles is determined only by their size and the Reynolds number. Here we demonstrate that the decoration of a bottom wall of the channel by superhydrophobic grooves provides additional possibilities for manipulation of neutrally-buoyant particles. It is shown that the effective anisotropic hydrodynamic slip of such a bottom wall can be readily used to alter the equilibrium positions of particles and to generate their motion transverse to the pressure gradient. These results may guide the design of novel inertial microfluidic devices for efficient sorting of neutrally-buoyant microparticles by their size.

cond-mat.soft↗

arXiv2018

Enhanced slip properties of lubricant-infused grooves

We ascertain the enhanced slip properties for a liquid flow over lubricant-infused unidirectional surfaces. This situation reflects many practical settings involving liquid flows past superhydrophobic grooves filled with gas, or past grooves infused with another, immiscible, liquid of smaller or equal viscosity, i.e. where the ratio of lubricant and liquid viscosities, $μ\leq 1$. To maximize the slippage, we consider deep grooves aligned with the flow. The (normalized by a texture period $L$) effective slip length, $b_{\mathrm{eff}}$, is found as an expansion to first order in protrusion angle $θ$ about a solution for a flat liquid-lubricant interface. Our results show a significant increase in $b_{\mathrm{eff}}$ with the area fraction of lubricant, $ϕ$, and a strong decrease with $μ$. By contrast, only little influence of $θ$ on $b_{\mathrm{eff}}$ is observed. Convex meniscus slightly enhances, and concave - slightly reduces $b_{\mathrm{eff}}$ relative the case of a flat liquid-lubricant interface. The largest correction for $θ$ is found when $μ= 0$, it decreases with $μ$, and disappears at $μ= 1$. Finally, we show that lubricant-infused surfaces of small $θ$ can be modeled as flat with patterns of local slip boundary conditions, and that the (scaled with $L$) local slip length at the liquid-lubricant interface is an universal function of $ϕ$ and $μ$ only.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2018

Boundary conditions at the gas sectors of superhydrophobic grooves

The hydrodynamics of liquid flowing past gas sectors of unidirectional superhydrophobic surfaces is revisited. Attention is focussed on the local slip boundary condition at the liquid-gas interface, which is equivalent to the effect of a gas cavity on liquid flow. The system is characterized by a large viscosity contrast between liquid and gas, $μ/μ_g \gg 1$. We interpret earlier results, namely the dependence of the local slip length on the flow direction, in terms of a tensorial local slip boundary condition and relate the eigenvalues of the local slip length tensor to the texture parameters, such as the width of the groove, $δ$, and the local depth of the groove, $e(y, α)$. The latter varies in the direction $y$, orthogonal to the orientation of stripes, and depends on the bevel angle of groove's edges, $π/2 - α$, at the point, where three phases meet. Our theory demonstrates that when grooves are sufficiently deep their eigenvalues of the local slip length tensor depend only on $μ/μ_g$, $δ$, and $α$, but not on the depth. The eigenvalues of the local slip length of shallow grooves depend on $μ/μ_g$ and $e(y, α)$, although the contribution of the bevel angle is moderate. In order to assess the validity of our theory we propose a novel approach to solve the two-phase hydrodynamic problem, which significantly facilitates and accelerates calculations compared to conventional numerical schemes. The numerical results show that our simple analytical description obtained for limiting cases of deep and shallow grooves remains valid for various unidirectional textures.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2017

Inertial focusing of finite-size particles in microchannels

At finite Reynolds numbers, Re, particles migrate across laminar flow streamlines to their equilibrium positions in microchannels. This migration is attributed to a lift force, and the balance between this lift and gravity determines the location of particles in channels. Here we demonstrate that velocity of finite-size particles located near a channel wall differs significantly from that of an undisturbed flow, and that their equilibrium position depends on this, referred to as slip velocity, difference. We then present theoretical arguments, which allow us to generalize expressions for a lift force, originally suggested for some limiting cases and Re<<1, to finite-size particles in a channel flow at Re < 20. Our theoretical model, validated by lattice Boltzmann simulations, provides considerable insight into inertial migration of finite-size particles in microchannel and suggests some novel microfluidic approaches to separate them by size or density at a moderate Re.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2017

Advective superdiffusion in superhydrophobic microchannels

We consider pressure-driven flows in wide microchannels, and discuss how a transverse shear, generated by misaligned superhydrophobic walls, impacts cross-sectional spreading of Brownian particles. We show that such a transverse shear can induce an advective superdiffusion, which strongly enhances dispersion of particles compared to a normal diffusion, and that maximal cross-sectional spreading corresponds to a crossover between its subballistic and superballistic regimes. This allows us to argue that an advective superdiffusion can be used for boosting dispersion of particles at smaller Peclet numbers compared to known concepts of passive microfluidic mixing. This implies that our superdiffusion scenario allows one efficient mixing of much smaller particles or using much thinner microchannels than methods, which are currently being exploited.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2015

Flows and mixing in channels with misaligned superhydrophobic walls

Aligned superhydrophobic surfaces with the same texture orientation reduce drag in the channel and generate secondary flows transverse to the direction of the applied pressure gradient. Here we show that a transverse shear can be easily generated by using superhydrophobic channels with misaligned textured surfaces. We propose a general theoretical approach to quantify this transverse flow by introducing the concept of an effective shear tensor. To illustrate its use, we present approximate theoretical solutions and Dissipative Particle Dynamics simulations for striped superhydrophobic channels. Our results demonstrate that the transverse shear leads to complex flow patterns, which provide a new mechanism of a passive vertical mixing at the scale of a texture period. Depending on the value of Reynolds number two different scenarios occur. At relatively low Reynolds number the flow represents a transverse shear superimposed with two co-rotating vortices. For larger Reynolds number these vortices become isolated, by suppressing fluid transport in the transverse direction.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2014

'Gas cushion' model and hydrodynamic boundary conditions for superhydrophobic textures

Superhydrophobic Cassie textures with trapped gas bubbles reduce drag, by generating large effective slip, which is important for a variety of applications that involve a manipulation of liquids at the small scale. Here we discuss how the dissipation in the gas phase of textures modifies their friction properties. We propose an operator method, which allows us the mapping of the flow in the gas subphase to a local slip boundary condition at the liquid/gas interface. The determined uniquely local slip length depends on the viscosity contrast and underlying topography, and can be immediately used to evaluate an effective slip of the texture. Besides superlubricating Cassie surfaces our approach is valid for rough surfaces impregnated by a low-viscosity 'lubricant', and even for Wenzel textures, where a liquid follows the surface relief. These results provide a framework for the rational design of textured surfaces for numerous applications.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2013

Flow in channels with superhydrophobic trapezoidal textures

Superhydrophobic one-dimensional surfaces reduce drag and generate transverse hydrodynamic phenomena by combining hydrophobicity and roughness to trap gas bubbles in microscopic textures. Recent works in this area have focused on specific cases of superhydrophobic stripes. Here we provide some theoretical results to guide the optimization of the forward flow and transverse hydrodynamic phenomena in a parallel-plate channel with a superhydrophobic trapezoidal texture, varying on scales larger than the channel thickness. The permeability of such a thin channel is shown to be equivalent to that of a striped one with greater average slip. The maximization of a transverse flow normally requires largest possible slip at the gas areas, similarly to a striped channel. However, in case of trapezoidal textures with a very small fraction of the solid phase this maximum occurs at a finite slip at the gas areas. Exact numerical calculations show that our analysis, based on a lubrication theory, can also be applied for a larger gap. However, in this case it overestimates a permeability of the channel, and underestimates an anisotropy of the flow. Our results provide a framework for the rational design of superhydrophobic surfaces for microfluidic applications.

physics.flu-dyn↗