Numerical Analysis of Fluid Flow Through a Flexible Microstructure Induced by Acoustic Streaming

A fundamental understanding of fluid flow through oscillating, compliant structures is lacking; especially in the case of micro structures. An improved model of such dynamic micro flow is sought. A multi-physics, numerical based study is presented herein. Results obtained provide preliminary quantification of these phenomena to compare with future experiments. In particular the perturbations in boundary pressure, integral to future slip-conditions models within a transient oscillatory boundary model, is quantified. The geometric model consisted of flow through a compliant tubular -structure with an oscillating wall. This simple model tested the solvers ability to solve an irregular flow regime with its built-in capabilities and provided insight into the nature of fluid-structure interaction at the investigated scales. Results suggested that traditional constant slip conditions at compliant fluid-structure interfaces are not adequate to capture the physics of the problem, as pressure varies greatly within the test specimen. Success with this venture provided a measure of validation and assurance for a more in-depth study with comparison to a reference. Results of this entire study highlight the need for improved physics-based methods for the determining the slip condition with oscillatory boundaries.