Surfactant spreading in a two-dimensional cavity and emergent contact-line singularities

We model the advective Marangoni spreading of insoluble surfactant at the free surface of a viscous fluid that is confined within a two-dimensional rectangular cavity. Interfacial deflections are assumed small, with contact lines pinned to the walls of the cavity, and inertia is neglected. Linearising the surfactant transport equation about the equilibrium state allows a modal decomposition of the dynamics, with eigenvalues corresponding to decay rates of perturbations. Computation of the family of mutually orthogonal two-dimensional eigenfunctions reveals singular flow structures near each contact line, resulting in spatially oscillatory patterns of shear stress and a pressure field that diverges logarithmically. These singularities at a stationary contact line are associated with dynamic compression of the surfactant monolayer. We show how they can be regularised by weak surface diffusion. Their existence highlights the need for careful treatment in computations of unsteady advection-dominated surfactant transport in confined domains.

Joukowsky actuator disc momentum theory

Actuator disc theory is the basis for most rotor design methods, be it with many extensions and engineering rules added to make it a well-established method. However, the off-design condition of a very low rotational speed Ω of the disc is still a topic for scientific discussions. Several authors have presented solutions of the associated momentum theory for actuator discs with a constant circulation, the so-called Joukowsky discs, showing the efficiency Cp → ∞ for the tip speed ratio λ → 0. The momentum balance is very sensitive to the choice of the vortex core radius δ as the pressure and velocity gradients become infinite for δ → 0. Viscous vortex cores do not show this singular behaviour so an inviscid core model is sought which removes the momentum balance sensitivity to singular flow. A vortex core with a constant δ does so. Applying this in the momentum balance results in Cp → 0 for λ → 0, instead of Cp → ∞. At the disc the velocity in the meridian plane is shown to be constant. The Joukowsky actuator disc theory is confirmed by a very good match with the numerically obtained results. It gives higher Cp values than corresponding solutions for discs with a Goldstein-based wake circulation published in literature.

Stokes flow singularity at the junction between impermeable and porous walls

For two-dimensional, creeping flow in a half-plane, we consider the singularity that arises at an abrupt transition in permeability from zero to a finite value along the wall, where the pressure is coupled to the seepage flux by Darcy’s law. This problem represents the junction between the impermeable wall of the inflow section and the porous membrane further downstream in a spiral-wound desalination module. On a macroscopic, outer length scale the singularity appears like a jump discontinuity in normal velocity, characterized by a non-integrable $1/ r$ divergence of the pressure. This far-field solution is imposed as the boundary condition along a semicircular arc of dimensionless radius 30 (referred to the microscopic, inner length scale). A preliminary numerical solution (using a least-squares variant of the method of fundamental solutions) indicates a continuous normal velocity along the wall coupled with a weaker $1/ \sqrt{r} $ singularity in the pressure. However, inconsistencies in the numerically imposed outer boundary condition indicate a very slow radial decay. We undertake asymptotic analysis to: (i) understand the radial decay behaviour; and (ii) find a more accurate far-field solution to impose as the outer boundary condition. Similarity solutions (involving a stream function that varies like some power of $r$) are insufficient to satisfy all boundary conditions along the wall, so we generalize these by introducing linear and quadratic terms in $\log r$. By iterating on the wall boundary conditions (analogous to the method of reflections), the outer asymptotic series is developed through second order. We then use a hybrid computational scheme in which the numerics are iteratively patched to the outer asymptotics, thereby determining two free coefficients in the latter. We also derive an inner asymptotic series and fit its free coefficient to the numerics at $r= 0. 01$. This enables evaluation of the singular flow field in the limit as $r\ensuremath{\rightarrow} 0$. Finally, a uniformly valid fit is obtained with analytical formulas. The singular flow field for a solid–porous abutment and the general Stokes flow solutions obtained in the asymptotic analysis are programmed in Fortran for future use as local basis functions in computational schemes. Numerics are required for the intermediate-$r$ regime because the inner and outer asymptotic expansions do not extend far enough toward each other to enable rigorous asymptotic matching. The logarithmic correction terms explain why the leading far-field solution (used in the preliminary numerics) was insufficient even at very large distances.

Flows without minimal set

In this paper we prove, using explicit constructions, that every non-compact manifold (except, of course, surfaces of finite genus) can be endowed with a non-singular flow without minimal subset, that is to say: a flow such that each orbit closure contains a smaller one.

Flow Characteristics of a Bluff Body Cut From a Circular Cylinder

This is a report on an investigation of the flow characteristics of a bluff body cut from a circular cylinder. The volume removed from the cylinder is equal to d/2(1 − cos θs), where d and θs are the diameter and the angular position (in the case of a circular cylinder, θs, = 0 deg), respectively. θs, ranged from 0 deg to 72.5 deg and Re (based on d and the upstream uniform flow velocity U∞) from 2.0 × 104 to 3.5 × 104. It is found that a singular flow around the cylinder occurs at around θs = 53 deg when Re > 2.5 × 104, and the base pressure coefficient (−Cpb,) and the drag coefficient CD take small values compared with those for otherθs.