The development of microfluidics platforms in recent years has led to an increase in the number of applications involving the flow of multiple immiscible layers of viscous electrolyte fluids. In this study, numerical results as well as analytic equations for velocity and shear stress profiles were derived for N layers with known viscosities, assuming steady laminar flow in a microchannel driven by pressure and/or electro-static (Coulomb) forces. Numerical simulation results, using a commercial software package, match analytical results for fully-developed flow. Entrance flow effects with centered fluid-layer shrinking were studied as well. Specifically, cases with larger viscosities in the inner layers show a very good agreement with experimental correlations for the dimensionless entrance length as a function of inlet Reynolds number. However, significant deviations may occur for multilayer flows with smaller viscosities in the inner layers. A correlation was deduced for the two-layer electroosmotic flow and the pressure driven flow, both being more complex when compared with single-layer flows. The impact of using power-law fluids on resulting velocity profiles has also been explored and compared to Newtonian fluid flows. The present model readily allows for an exploration of the impact of design choices on velocity profiles, shear stress, and channel distribution in multilayer microchannel flows as a function of layered viscosity distribution and type of driving force.
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e-mail: ck@eos.ncsu.edu
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November 2011
Research Papers
Analysis of Multi-Layer Immiscible Fluid Flow in a Microchannel
Jie Li,
Jie Li
Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, NC State University
, Raleigh, NC 27695-7910
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Paul S. Sheeran,
Paul S. Sheeran
Joint Departments of Biomedical Engineering
, UNC Chapel Hill and NC State University, Chapel Hill, NC 27599
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Clement Kleinstreuer
e-mail: ck@eos.ncsu.edu
Clement Kleinstreuer
Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, NC State University
, Raleigh, NC 27695-7910; Joint Departments of Biomedical Engineering, UNC Chapel Hill and NC State University, Chapel Hill, NC 27599
Search for other works by this author on:
Jie Li
Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, NC State University
, Raleigh, NC 27695-7910
Paul S. Sheeran
Joint Departments of Biomedical Engineering
, UNC Chapel Hill and NC State University, Chapel Hill, NC 27599
Clement Kleinstreuer
Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, NC State University
, Raleigh, NC 27695-7910; Joint Departments of Biomedical Engineering, UNC Chapel Hill and NC State University, Chapel Hill, NC 27599e-mail: ck@eos.ncsu.edu
J. Fluids Eng. Nov 2011, 133(11): 111202 (10 pages)
Published Online: October 19, 2011
Article history
Received:
June 30, 2011
Accepted:
September 16, 2011
Online:
October 19, 2011
Published:
October 19, 2011
Citation
Li, J., Sheeran, P. S., and Kleinstreuer, C. (October 19, 2011). "Analysis of Multi-Layer Immiscible Fluid Flow in a Microchannel." ASME. J. Fluids Eng. November 2011; 133(11): 111202. https://doi.org/10.1115/1.4005134
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