Asymmetry-induced particle drift in a rotating flow

Abstract

We report on an intriguing phenomenon taking place in a liquid rotating around a fixed horizontal axis. Under suitable conditions, bubbles and particles are observed to drift along the axis of rotation maintaining a constant distance from it and a constant angle of elevation above the horizontal. Absence of fore-aft symmetry of the bubble or particle shape is a prerequisite for this phenomenon. For bubbles, this requires a volume sufficiently large for surface-tension effects to be small and large deformations to be possible. Particle image velocimetry and flow visualization suggest that the wake does not play a role. The dependence on bubble radius, particle shape, liquid viscosity, and speed of rotation is investigated.

Description

Keywords

Fluid drag, Bernoulli's principle, Viscosity, Fluid flows, Flow boundary effects, Buoyancy

Citation

Copyright 2005 Physics of Fluids. Recommended citation: Bluemink, J. J., E. A. Van Nierop, S. Luther, N. G. Deen, Jacques Magnaudet, Andrea Prosperetti, and Detlef Lohse. "Asymmetry-induced particle drift in a rotating flow." Physics of fluids 17, no. 7 (2005): 072106. DOI: 10.1063/1.1978921 URL: https://aip.scitation.org/doi/abs/10.1063/1.1978921 Reproduced in accordance with the original publisher’s licensing terms and with permission from the author(s).