130 research outputs found
The crossover from single file to Fickian diffusion
The crossover from single-file diffusion, where the mean-square displacement
scales as ~t^(1/2), to normal Fickian diffusion, where ~tL$ such that (L- 2 \sigma)/\sigma = \delta_c << 1 the particles can be
described as hopping past one-another in an average time t_{hop}. For shorter
times t << t_{hop} the particles still exhibit sub-diffusive behaviour, but at
longer times t > t_{hop}, normal Fickian diffusion sets in with an effective
diffusion constant D_{hop} ~ t_{hop}^(1/2). For the Brownian particles, t_{hop}
~ 1/\delta_c^(2) when \delta << 1, but when hydrodynamic interactions are
included, we find a stronger dependence than \delta_c^{-2}. We attribute this
difference to short-range lubrication forces that make it more difficult for
particles to hop past each other in very narrow channels
Translational and rotational friction on a colloidal rod near a wall
We present particulate simulation results for translational and rotational
friction components of a shish-kebab model of a colloidal rod with aspect ratio
(length over diameter) in the presence of a planar hard wall.
Hydrodynamic interactions between rod and wall cause an overall enhancement of
the friction tensor components. We find that the friction enhancements to
reasonable approximation scale inversely linear with the closest distance
between the rod surface and the wall, for in the range between and
. The dependence of the wall-induced friction on the angle between
the long axis of the rod and the normal to the wall is studied and fitted with
simple polynomials in .Comment: 8 pages, 8 figure
Mesoscale modeling of the rheology of pressure sensitive adhesives through inclusion of transient forces
For optimal application, pressure-sensitive adhesives must have rheological
properties in between those of a viscoplastic solid and those of a viscoelastic
liquid. Such adhesives can be produced by emulsion polymerisation, resulting in
latex particles which are dispersed in water and contain long-chain acrylic
polymers. When the emulsion is dried, the latex particles coalesce and an
adhesive film is formed. The rheological properties of the dried samples are
believed to be dominated by the interface regions between the original latex
particles, but the relation between rheology and latex particle properties is
poorly understood. In this paper we show that it is possible to describe the
bulk rheology of a pressure-sensitive adhesive by means of a mesoscale
simulation model. To reach experimental time and length scales, each latex
particle is represented by just one simulated particle. The model is subjected
to oscillatory shear flow and extensional flow. Simple order of magnitude
estimates of the model parameters already lead to semi-quantitative agreement
with experimental results. We show that inclusion of transient forces in the
model, i.e. forces with memory of previous configurations, is essential to
correctly predict the linear and nonlinear properties.Comment: 29 pages, 8 figure
The Effects of Inter-particle Attractions on Colloidal Sedimentation
We use a mesoscopic simulation technique to study the effect of short-ranged
inter-particle attraction on the steady-state sedimentation of colloidal
suspensions. Attractions increase the average sedimentation velocity
compared to the pure hard-sphere case, and for strong enough attractions, a
non-monotonic dependence on the packing fraction with a maximum velocity
at intermediate is observed. Attractions also strongly enhance
hydrodynamic velocity fluctuations, which show a pronounced maximum size as a
function of . These results are linked to a complex interplay between
hydrodynamics and the formation and break-up of transient many-particle
clusters.Comment: 4 pages 4 figure
Force calculation on walls and embedded particles in multiparticle collision dynamics simulations
Colloidal solutions posses a wide range of time and length scales, so that it
is unfeasible to keep track of all of them within a single simulation. As a
consequence some form of coarse-graining must be applied. In this work we use
the Multi-Particle Collision Dynamics scheme. We describe a particular
implementation of no-slip boundary conditions upon a solid surface, capable of
providing correct force s on the solid bypassing the calculation of the
velocity profile or the stre ss tensor in the fluid near the surface. As an
application we measure the friction on a spherical particle, when it is placed
in a bulk fluid and when it is confined in a slit. We show that the
implementation of the no-slip boundary conditions leads to an enhanced Ensko g
friction, which can be understood analytically. Because of the long-range
nature of hydrodynamic interactions, the Stokes friction obtained from the
simulations is sensitive of the simulation box size. We address this topic for
the slit geometry, showing that that the dependence on the system size differs
very much from what is expected in a 3D system, where periodic boundary
conditions are used in all directions.Comment: To appear in Physical Review
Efficient simulation of non-crossing fibers and chains in a hydrodynamic solvent
An efficient simulation method is presented for Brownian fiber suspensions,
which includes both uncrossability of the fibers and hydrodynamic interactions
between the fibers mediated by a mesoscopic solvent. To conserve hydrodynamics,
collisions between the fibers are treated such that momentum and energy are
conserved locally. The choice of simulation parameters is rationalised on the
basis of dimensionless numbers expressing the relative strength of different
physical processes. The method is applied to suspensions of semiflexible fibers
with a contour length equal to the persistence length, and a mesh size to
contour length ratio ranging from 0.055 to 0.32. For such fibers the effects of
hydrodynamic interactions are observable, but relatively small. The
non-crossing constraint, on the other hand, is very important and leads to
hindered displacements of the fibers, with an effective tube diameter in
agreement with recent theoretical predictions. The simulation technique opens
the way to study the effect of viscous effects and hydrodynamic interactions in
microrheology experiments where the response of an actively driven probe bead
in a fiber suspension is measured.Comment: 12 pages, 2 tables, 5 figure
Hydrodynamic and Brownian Fluctuations in Sedimenting Suspensions
We use a mesoscopic computer simulation method to study the interplay between
hydrodynamic and Brownian fluctuations during steady-state sedimentation of
hard sphere particles for Peclet numbers (Pe) ranging from 0.1 to 15. Even when
the hydrodynamic interactions are an order of magnitude weaker than Brownian
forces, they still induce backflow effects that dominate the reduction of the
average sedimentation velocity with increasing particle packing fraction.
Velocity fluctuations, on the other hand, begin to show nonequilibrium
hydrodynamic character for Pe > 1Comment: 4 pages 4 figures, RevTex, to appear in Phys. Rev. Lett. New version
with some minor correction
Stick boundary conditions and rotational velocity auto-correlation functions for colloidal particles in a coarse-grained representation of the solvent
We show how to implement stick boundary conditions for a spherical colloid in
a solvent that is coarse-grained by the method of stochastic rotation dynamics.
This allows us to measure colloidal rotational velocity auto-correlation
functions by direct computer simulation. We find quantitative agreement with
Enskog theory for short times and with hydrodynamic mode-coupling theory for
longer times. For aqueous colloidal suspensions, the Enskog contribution to the
rotational friction is larger than the hydrodynamic one when the colloidal
radius drops below 35nm.Comment: new version with some minor change
Transport coefficients of multi-particle collision algorithms with velocity-dependent collision rules
Detailed calculations of the transport coefficients of a recently introduced
particle-based model for fluid dynamics with a non-ideal equation of state are
presented. Excluded volume interactions are modeled by means of biased
stochastic multiparticle collisions which depend on the local velocities and
densities. Momentum and energy are exactly conserved locally. A general scheme
to derive transport coefficients for such biased, velocity dependent collision
rules is developed. Analytic expressions for the self-diffusion coefficient and
the shear viscosity are obtained, and very good agreement is found with
numerical results at small and large mean free paths. The viscosity turns out
to be proportional to the square root of temperature, as in a real gas. In
addition, the theoretical framework is applied to a two-component version of
the model, and expressions for the viscosity and the difference in diffusion of
the two species are given.Comment: 31 pages, 8 figures, accepted by J. Phys. Cond. Matte
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