Peristaltic pumping under poroelastic confinement
Phys. Rev. Fluids 11, 094003 – Published 18 September, 2026
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/ykpv-ylv3
Abstract
Low Reynolds number flow near a poroelastic interface can be found across scales in biological and engineered systems. We develop a two-dimensional model of peristaltic flow confined under a poroelastic solid. In this geometry, the lower boundary is an infinite train of traveling waves which pump fluid along a channel. The upper boundary of the flow is a poroelastic half-space. The flow and deformation are solved analytically by an asymptotic expansion in the peristaltic amplitude and depend nonlinearly on dimensionless poroelastic stiffness, permeability, and interfacial slip. We quantify the effect of material properties on the poroelastic fluid-structure interaction. Peristaltic flow through the channel is inhibited by poroelastic confinement owing to increased viscous dissipation across the interface and energy loss in deforming the elastic solid. Permeability and slip interact with the material stiffness to produce material dependent regimes of forward or backward interstitial flow within the poroelastic domain. The maximum Darcy flow is found to occur at permeability values that optimize the elastic matrix interaction.
