Recent Articles

Magnetophoresis of paramagnetic nanoparticles in suspensions under magnetic field gradients

Peter Rassolov, Jamel Ali, Theo Siegrist, Munir Humayun, and Hadi Mohammadigoushki

Phys. Rev. Fluids 10, 073701 (2025) - Published 14 July, 2025

As paramagnetic manganese oxide particles in aqueous suspension undergo magnetophoresis under nonuniform magnetic fields, the resulting concentration gradients induce a bulk fluid motion that hastens the removal of these particles from suspension. We systematically study this fluid motion using both experiments and simulations, and we hypothesize that this induced bulk fluid motion occurs for magnetic Grashof numbers of 1 and greater. We also find that where magnetophoresis opposes sedimentation under gravity, regions of particle depletion form where magnetophoresis is stronger. Finally, we predict field-induced particle aggregation for particles of radii 130 nm and greater.

Asymptotic model for the interplay of sedimentation and crystallization

Milton Assunção, Kevin M. Moroney, Doireann O'Kiely, and Michael Vynnycky

Phys. Rev. Fluids 10, 074302 (2025) - Published 14 July, 2025

This paper is part of a study related to the crystallization of drug molecules on low-Earth-orbit satellites. Here, we model the coupled crystallization and sedimentation of a particle in a solvent. We find that by varying the strength of gravity from hypergravity to microgravity, we can control whether the particle will sediment quickly and then grow, or grow while sedimenting. Asymptotic analysis allows us to determine and efficiently model the regimes through which a particle evolves during its growth and sedimentation.

Nutrient uptake by a squirmer: The critical role of closed streamlines

Ashok S. Sangani

Phys. Rev. Fluids 10, 074502 (2025) - Published 14 July, 2025

Nutrient mass transport to a spherical squirmer whose motion causes recirculating regions is examined. Mass transport across the dividing streamline III must equal mass transport to the squirmer along II. Nutrient concentration boundary layers form at large Peclet numbers along I and II with thicknesses diverging at stagnation point B. These boundary layers emerge out of the stagnation region with a discontinuity in nutrient mass flux along III. New boundary layers form alongside III to compensate for this discontinuity. We conduct a detailed analysis of this mass transfer process to obtain an analytical expression for the rate of nutrient mass transport at large Peclet numbers.

Influence of Euler acceleration on the aerodynamic loading and leading-edge vortex dynamics over a rotating wing

Abbishek Gururaj, Sarah Morris, Mahyar Moaven, Brian Thurow, and Vrishank Raghav

Phys. Rev. Fluids 10, 074702 (2025) - Published 14 July, 2025

This study is aimed at investigating the influence of Euler acceleration on the transient dynamics over a rotating wing. A new dimensionless acceleration parameter, defined as the ratio of Euler acceleration to convective acceleration, is introduced. Using this parameter, the transient dynamics are classified into quasi-steady and acceleration-dominated regimes, with each regime exhibiting distinct lift generation and vortex evolution mechanisms. The proposed scaling and regime classification offer a valuable framework for studying transient aerodynamic behavior and guiding future investigations in selecting appropriate parameters to better understand the role of Euler acceleration.

Flexible floaters align with the direction of wave propagation

Basile Dhote, Frederic Moisy, and Wietze Herreman

Phys. Rev. Fluids 10, 074801 (2025) - Published 14 July, 2025

When elongated, flexible floaters such as dead leaves, drifting nets or agglomerated microplastic blobs drift on surface waves, they spontaneously align with the direction of wave propagation. We investigate this phenomenon through theoretical analysis and laboratory experiments. We demonstrate that a thin, flexible strip experiences a mean second-order moment that induces a slow angular drift, analogous to the Stokes drift mechanism for the linear motion. This drift arises from an imbalance between the slightly stronger accelerations on the wave crests, that favor longitudinal orientation, and the weaker accelerations in the troughs, that favor transverse orientation.

Evolution of flow structures and the dynamics of helicity under the effects of Coriolis force in inhomogeneous rotating turbulence

Runyuan Gan, Running Hu, Xinliang Li, and Changping Yu

Phys. Rev. Fluids 10, 074802 (2025) - Published 14 July, 2025

Inhomogeneous rotating turbulence is ubiquitous but rarely investigated. The unevenly distributed Coriolis force causes a difference in the relative intensity between inertial force and Coriolis force, resulting in distinguished scaling laws in the rapid and slow rotating regions. In our study, we conducted direct numerical simulations (DNS) of inhomogeneous rotating turbulence, which reveals how the Coriolis force influences coherent structures and, in turn, the scaling laws. That is, the Coriolis force accounts for the formation of dumbbell-shaped columnar structures and the generation of helicity.

Efficient Lagrangian averaging with exponential filters

Abhijeet Minz, Lois E. Baker, Hossein A. Kafiabad, and Jacques Vanneste

Phys. Rev. Fluids 10, 074902 (2025) - Published 14 July, 2025

Fluid flows involve multiple time scales and averaging over fast time scales is often key to their analysis. Averaging is usually carried out at fixed positions, but averaging along particle trajectories – Lagrangian averaging – has advantages. The numerical computation of Lagrangian averages from simulation data is a challenge, however.

This work develops a new, fast method for the computation of Lagrangian averages. The method is effective at filtering out fast waves and extracting turbulent flow features as the shallow-water simulation shown in the image illustrates (top half, full vorticity field; bottom half, Lagrangian-averaged vorticity field).

Flow signatures of activity-dependent dynamics in active nematics

Robin V. Bölsterli, Benjamin H. Andersen, and Amin Doostmohammadi

Phys. Rev. Fluids 10, L071101 (2025) - Published 14 July, 2025

In active materials, turbulent flows emerge spontaneously from collective motion, yet identifying meaningful signatures of their transitions remains challenging. Here, we use an information-theoretic divergence measure, based on computable information density (CID), to reveal a robust activity threshold that marks a qualitative shift in defect dynamics, flow correlations, and mixing behavior. This threshold offers a new spatiotemporal order parameter for characterizing nonequilibrium transitions in active systems. Our findings open avenues for linking information flow to physical organization in living materials.

Numerical characterization of postdetonation reshock driven mixing in explosions

A. Panchal and S. Menon

Phys. Rev. Fluids 10, 074501 (2025) - Published 11 July, 2025

Richtmyer-Meshkov (RM) and Rayleigh-Taylor (RT) instabilities are expected to play a crucial role in the explosion-driven post-detonation mixing. They can control mixing within an explosive fireball and that of an external agent with the background air and products. The conventional understanding and models of RMI and RTI primarily stem from channel studies; however, this numerical study considers three-dimensional and reactive simulations of a spherical explosion to demonstrate that they can be applied for post-detonation mixing under certain conditions.

Model for self-organized Leidenfrost rotating polygons as cnoidal waves

A. S. Carstea and A. Ludu

Phys. Rev. Fluids 10, 074402 (2025) - Published 9 July, 2025

We examine the spontaneous emergence of rotating, regular, and peaked polygonal patterns in Leidenfrost rings (first observed in 2007) with a model incorporating surface tension, poloidal rolling vortices, and the interplay of buoyancy-driven and thermocapillary flows. Fluid velocity is decomposed into potential and rotational components, and a vortex Reynolds number is used. A nonlinear equation, solved with Helmholtz–Hodge boundary conditions, produces periodic cnoidal wave solutions consistent with experiments. A parallel model, based on capillary pressure averaging, leads to a KdV-type equation yielding cnoidal and trigonometric solutions, closely matching the observed peaked polygons.

Taylor swimming sheet under a finite Brinkman layer

Tasawar Iqbal, Catherine Penington, Christian Thomas, and Lyndon Koens

Phys. Rev. Fluids 10, 074102 (2025) - Published 8 July, 2025

We considered a Taylor’s swimming sheet under a finite Brinkman layer. This finite layer thickness changes the established swimming dynamics relative to single and two fluid region models. Unlike swimming in a Newtonian bubble surrounded by an infinite Brinkman fluid, the swimming speed does experience any enhancement, relative to swimming in an infinite Newtonian fluid, as the distance to the Brinkman fluid increases. Even so an increase in the maximum swimming occurs for non-unity porosities in thin highly permeable Brinkman layers.

Laminar turbulent behavior in shear-thickening channel flow

Emanuele Milocco, Georgios Giamagas, Francesco Zonta, and Alfredo Soldati

Phys. Rev. Fluids 10, 073301 (2025) - Published 7 July, 2025

How do non-Newtonian shear-thickening fluids behave under turbulent conditions? Using direct numerical simulations, this study uncovers how increasing shear-thickening (Carreau number, Cu) progressively alters flow dynamics, reshaping near-wall structures and disrupting the self-sustaining processes of turbulence. Remarkably, even in regimes where Newtonian flows would relaminarize, these fluids sustain unsteady motion, exposing a complex interplay between rheology and turbulence.

Propulsive performance of a windsurf-inspired pitching foil

Gauthier Bertrand, Tristan Aurégan, Benjamin Thiria, Ramiro Godoy-Diana, and Marc Fermigier

Phys. Rev. Fluids 10, 074401 (2025) - Published 7 July, 2025

At the start of a race or in light winds, windfoil athletes use intermittent propulsion by pumping the sail to get or keep the board in foiling mode, for example after a tack change. This involves periodically changing the angle of the sail relative to the wind by moving the center of mass up and down. We experimentally investigated the impact of the incidence angle on the aerodynamic forces using a pitching foil at a reduced scale, as well as different frequency and amplitude combinations within a certain range of Strouhal numbers. Our measurements revealed aerodynamic behaviors that enabled us to explore sailing race strategies.

Stochastic forcing in linear analysis for turbulent channel flow: Optimization and modeling

Anjia Ying, Zhigang Li, and Lin Fu

Phys. Rev. Fluids 10, 074601 (2025) - Published 7 July, 2025

The understanding and prediction of coherent flow structures are crucial for drag reduction and flow control of wall-bounded turbulence. A white-noise forcing model for predicting the flow structures is proposed for the eddy-viscosity-based linear analysis of turbulent channel flow, based on the self-similar features of the optimized ones within a wide range of Reynolds numbers. Regardless of the specific eddy-viscosity model adopted, the relative errors of the predicted covariance tensor and the estimated flow state with the forcing model are notably reduced compared to those without such a model, highlighting its universality in the linear analysis of wall-bounded turbulence.

Spatial structure of the Lamb vector in a separated three-dimensional shear flow around a wing

Juan Carlos Bilbao-Ludena and George Papadakis

Phys. Rev. Fluids 10, 074701 (2025) - Published 7 July, 2025

The Lamb vector appears in the rotational form of the Navier–Stokes equations and governs vortical nonlinearity and energy cascade in turbulence. This study elucidates its three-dimensional spatial structure in the separated near wake of a NACA0018 wing. The Helmholtz decomposition reveals distinct patterns of the potential and solenoidal components. Integration of the cross-stream component of the Lamb vector demonstrates that the Taylor–Sears condition is satisfied at the trailing edge.

Effective viscous flow and transport in a tube with corrugated surface

Gerardo Severino

Phys. Rev. Fluids 10, 074101 (2025) - Published 2 July, 2025

Flow and solute transport within a cylindrical domain with randomly distributed walls’ topology is solved by means of a stochastic mapping which converts the corrugated flow domain into another one of regular boundaries. The impact of the former corrugated surface is transferred into the coefficients of the transformed flow equations, therefore allowing the computation of the effective flow and transport properties.

Electrohydrodynamic drift of a drop away from an insulating wall

Diptendu Sen, Mohammadhossein Firouznia, Jeremy A. Koch, David Saintillan, and Petia M. Vlahovska

Phys. Rev. Fluids 10, 073601 (2025) - Published 1 July, 2025

A charge-neutral drop in a uniform DC electric field does not migrate in free space — but a nearby insulating wall breaks this symmetry. We show that the wall induces lateral migration, with direction and magnitude governed by the conductivity and permittivity ratios (R and P) of the drop to the medium. For R/P < 1, electrohydrodynamic flow repels the drop from the wall; for R/P > 1, it attracts. Experiments and boundary integral simulations quantify this lift force and reveal that the dominant effect is the long-range flow from the image stresslet.

Migration of particles in a Couette device in suspensions having a continuous size distribution profile

O. M. Lavrenteva, I. Smagin, and A. Nir

Phys. Rev. Fluids 10, 074301 (2025) - Published 1 July, 2025

Measurement of suspension properties in a viscometrical device as a Couette cell yield dynamic data due to migration of particles in the shear field. Ultimately, the system stabilizes and properties as particle concentration, particles size distribution, suspension effective viscosity, velocity distribution become stationary and position dependent. The paper displays the stationary properties for a suspension having, initially, a Gaussian particle size distribution. The figure displays the profiles of stationary average particle size in the Couette device.

Consistent continuum equations and numerical benchmarks for a perturbation-based, variable-coefficient acoustofluidic solver

Khemraj Gautam Kshetri, Amneet Pal Singh Bhalla, and Nitesh Nama

Phys. Rev. Fluids 10, 074901 (2025) - Published 1 July, 2025

This study revisits the perturbation approach to develop a consistent continuum framework for a variable-coefficient acoustofluidic solver. By distinguishing between the fluid’s Lagrangian and mass transport velocities, we reveal two analytically equivalent but numerically distinct forms of the second-order mass source. These velocities are systematically related to demonstrate that zero Lagrangian and mass transport velocity boundary conditions are generally not equivalent. Numerical accuracy is verified via the Method of Manufactured Solutions, and several test cases highlight sensitivity to boundary conditions and spatial variations in density.

Pulsatile flow hemodynamics in stenosed arterial curvatures

Mohammad Owais, Abdullah Y. Usmani, and K. Muralidhar

Phys. Rev. Fluids 10, 063101 (2025) - Published 30 June, 2025

Stenosis developing near arterial bends due to localized plaque buildup narrows the lumen and disrupts the blood flow. This disturbance alters the wall shear stress (WSS) loading and promotes vascular disease progression. In this study, pulsatile flow in straight and bent stenosed artery models was numerically simulated for Reynolds numbers (Re) from 300–1200 and Womersley numbers (Wo) from 7.62–15.24, respectively. Flow imaging at Re = 1200, Wo = 7.62 was performed for validation. Results show that bends intensify flow disturbances, vortex breakdown, and oscillatory shear index, emphasizing the impact of arterial geometry on disease development.

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