A general formulation of Bead Models applied to flexible fibers and active filaments at low Reynolds number

This contribution provides a general framework to use Lagrange multipliers for the simulation of low Reynolds number fiber dynamics based on Bead Models (BM). This formalism provides an efficient method to account for kinematic constraints. We illustrate, with several examples, to which extent the proposed formulation offers a flexible and versatile framework for the quantitative modeling of flexible fibers deformation and rotation in shear flow, the dynamics of actuated filaments and the propulsion of active swimmers. Furthermore, a new contact model called Gears Model is proposed and successfully tested. It avoids the use of numerical artifices such as repulsive forces between adjacent beads, a source of numerical difficulties in the temporal integration of previous Bead Models.Comment: 41 pages, 15 figure

Large-scale simulation of steady and time-dependent active suspensions with the force-coupling method

We present a new development of the force-coupling method (FCM) to address the accurate simulation of a large number of interacting micro-swimmers. Our approach is based on the squirmer model, which we adapt to the FCM framework, resulting in a method that is suitable for simulating semi-dilute squirmer suspensions. Other effects, such as steric interactions, are considered with our model. We test our method by comparing the velocity field around a single squirmer and the pairwise interactions between two squirmers with exact solutions to the Stokes equations and results given by other numerical methods. We also illustrate our method's ability to describe spheroidal swimmer shapes and biologically-relevant time-dependent swimming gaits. We detail the numerical algorithm used to compute the hydrodynamic coupling between a large collection ($10^4-10 ^5$) of micro-swimmers. Using this methodology, we investigate the emergence of polar order in a suspension of squirmers and show that for large domains, both the steady-state polar order parameter and the growth rate of instability are independent of system size. These results demonstrate the effectiveness of our approach to achieve near continuum-level results, allowing for better comparison with experimental measurements while complementing and informing continuum models.Comment: 37 pages, 21 figure

Simulating Brownian suspensions with fluctuating hydrodynamics

Fluctuating hydrodynamics has been successfully combined with several computational methods to rapidly compute the correlated random velocities of Brownian particles. In the overdamped limit where both particle and fluid inertia are ignored, one must also account for a Brownian drift term in order to successfully update the particle positions. In this paper, we present an efficient computational method for the dynamic simulation of Brownian suspensions with fluctuating hydrodynamics that handles both computations and provides a similar approximation as Stokesian Dynamics for dilute and semidilute suspensions. This advancement relies on combining the fluctuating force-coupling method (FCM) with a new midpoint time-integration scheme we refer to as the drifter-corrector (DC). The DC resolves the drift term for fluctuating hydrodynamics-based methods at a minimal computational cost when constraints are imposed on the fluid flow to obtain the stresslet corrections to the particle hydrodynamic interactions. With the DC, this constraint need only be imposed once per time step, reducing the simulation cost to nearly that of a completely deterministic simulation. By performing a series of simulations, we show that the DC with fluctuating FCM is an effective and versatile approach as it reproduces both the equilibrium distribution and the evolution of particulate suspensions in periodic as well as bounded domains. In addition, we demonstrate that fluctuating FCM coupled with the DC provides an efficient and accurate method for large-scale dynamic simulation of colloidal dispersions and the study of processes such as colloidal gelation

Modeling and Simulation of Individual and Collective Swimming Mechanisms in Active Suspensions

We have all witnessed the flocking of starlings in the sky and the schools of fish that form in the ocean. This kind of organization of living creatures is not limited to those that we see, but also occurs for those that we don’t : swimming microorganisms. Suspen- sions of micro-swimmers exhibit a rich dynamics. Their behaviors can play an important role in the survival of the group, its development, the balance between species, their trophic strategies and even animal fertility. They can form coherent structures due to collective motion, mix the surrounding fluid or modify its rheological properties. Such diversity results from the complex interplay between swimming strategies, physiological processes, chemical reactions and hydrodynamic interactions. Fluid Mechanics is there- fore essential to understand and master the mechanisms involved in these phenomena. While experimental studies bring out new findings and, sometimes, provide physical ex- planations, modeling remains essential. Yet, including an accurate description of the micro-swimmers in a suspension containing thousands (nay millions) individuals, requires considering a wide range of coupled scales (from one micron 10^−6m to several millimeters 10^−3m). What happens on large scales depends on sophisticated mechanisms occurring two or three orders of magnitude below. Therefore, the multiscale modeling of such phenomena is still a major challenge for the state-of-the-art numerical methods. This thesis aims at providing a contribution in that direction. In a first part, we will show that reproducing swimming mechanisms at the scale of the micro-swimmer can be achieved with various models spanning different levels of complexity. We will then present our developments to incorporate these models in an efficient framework for large scale simulations. We will show how to simultaneously account for the Brownian motion of the smallest particles (10^−6m). Our code reproduces known results from the literature with the same accuracy, but at lower cost and at larger scales, thus bridging a gap between particle-based models, experiments and continuum formulations from kinetic theory. Using the capabilities afforded by our method, we eventually address two open problems in the experimental literature : the origins of orientational correla- tions between interacting self-propelled micro-droplets and the mechanisms at play in the nonlinear enhancement of Brownian particle diffusion in active suspensions

Modeling and Simulation of Individual and Collective Swimming Mechanisms in Active Suspensions

Nous avons tou(te)s été témoins des nuages d'étourneaux dans le ciel ou de la formation de bancs de poissons dans l'océan. Ce type d'organisation chez les êtres vivant se produit aussi à des échelles parfois invisibles pour l'oeil humain: celles des micro-organismes. Les suspensions de micro-nageurs présentent une dynamique riche. Elles peuvent former des structures cohérentes résultant d'un mouvement collectif, mélanger le fluides environnant et/ou modifier ses propriétés rhéologiques. Leurs comportements peuvent jouer un rôle important dans la survie, l'équilibre des espèces, leur stratégie trophique et même pour la fertilité animale. La diversité des phénomènes observés résulte de l'interaction complexe entre mécanismes de nage, processus physiologiques, processus chimiques et interactions hydrodynamiques. Comprendre et maîtriser les mécanismes impliqués fait nécessairement appel la Mécanique des Fluides. Les études expérimentales permettent de mettre en exergue certains phénomènes et parfois de les expliquer. Cependant la modélisation s'avère indispensable. Or, inclure une description fine des mécanismes de nages dans une suspension contenant des milliers (voire des millions) d'individus, implique de considérer une vaste gamme d'échelles couplées (typiquement du micron 10^-6m au millimètre 10^-3m). Décrire une physique multi-échelles pour ce type problème reste un défi majeur pour la modélisation numérique actuelle. Ainsi, dans le cadre de cette thèse nous nous proposons d'apporter une contribution dans cette direction. Nous montrerons dans une première partie qu'il est possible de reproduire les mécanismes de nage de façon satisfaisante à l'échelle du micro-organisme avec des modèles de différentes complexités. Nous présenterons ensuite nos développements pour étendre ces modèles a l'échelle de la suspension. Nous montrerons comment inclure simultanément les effets Browniens qui agissent sur les plus petite particules (10^-6m). Enfin, nous exploiterons l'outil mis en place pour simuler des suspensions actives. Sa capacité à reproduire certains résultats de la littérature à précision égale, à moindre coût et à plus grande échelle, permet de combler le fossé entre modèles individuels, travaux expérimentaux et modèles continus issus de la théorie cinétique. Forts de cet outil, nous tenterons de répondre à deux questions ouvertes dans la littérature expérimentale : l'origine des corrélations d'orientation dans les suspensions de microgouttes auto-propulsées et les mécanismes en jeu dans la diffusion des particules Browniennes dans les suspensions actives. ABSTRACT : We have all witnessed the flocking of starlings in the sky and the schools of fish that form in the ocean. This kind of organization of living creatures is not limited to those that we see, but also occurs for those that we don’t : swimming microorganisms. Suspen- sions of micro-swimmers exhibit a rich dynamics. Their behaviors can play an important role in the survival of the group, its development, the balance between species, their trophic strategies and even animal fertility. They can form coherent structures due to collective motion, mix the surrounding fluid or modify its rheological properties. Such diversity results from the complex interplay between swimming strategies, physiological processes, chemical reactions and hydrodynamic interactions. Fluid Mechanics is there- fore essential to understand and master the mechanisms involved in these phenomena. While experimental studies bring out new findings and, sometimes, provide physical ex- planations, modeling remains essential. Yet, including an accurate description of the micro-swimmers in a suspension containing thousands (nay millions) individuals, requires considering a wide range of coupled scales (from one micron 10^−6m to several millimeters 10^−3m). What happens on large scales depends on sophisticated mechanisms occurring two or three orders of magnitude below. Therefore, the multiscale modeling of such phenomena is still a major challenge for the state-of-the-art numerical methods. This thesis aims at providing a contribution in that direction. In a first part, we will show that reproducing swimming mechanisms at the scale of the micro-swimmer can be achieved with various models spanning different levels of complexity. We will then present our developments to incorporate these models in an efficient framework for large scale simulations. We will show how to simultaneously account for the Brownian motion of the smallest particles (10^−6m). Our code reproduces known results from the literature with the same accuracy, but at lower cost and at larger scales, thus bridging a gap between particle-based models, experiments and continuum formulations from kinetic theory. Using the capabilities afforded by our method, we eventually address two open problems in the experimental literature : the origins of orientational correla- tions between interacting self-propelled micro-droplets and the mechanisms at play in the nonlinear enhancement of Brownian particle diffusion in active suspensions

Hydrodynamic interactions among large populations of swimming micro-organisms.

Bio-convection, biofilm forming or mechanics of reproduction are connected to the motility and collective behaviour of micro-organisms. For instance, spermatozoa suspensions exhibit coherent motion whose frequency and lifespan are strongly correlated to semen fertility (Moore et al. 2002). As interplays in many-bodied systems result in intricate patterns, the understanding of these requires an in-depth knowledge of the suspension microstructure and statistics. Representative and reliable statistics require a large number Np of interactive swimmers that many simulation methods can hardly afford [e.g. Np ¼ 40 in Mehandia and Nott (2008) or Np # 216 in Ishikawa et al. (2008)]. In the following, a spherical swimmer model is derived from the classical low Reynolds number framework and implemented in the force-coupling method (FCM) for large populations. Resulting statistics reveals non-trivial spatial arrangements of swimmers depending on their swimming gait

A general formulation of Bead Models applied to flexible fibers and active filaments at low Reynolds number

This contribution provides a general framework to use Lagrange multipliers for the simulation of low Reynolds number fiber dynamics based on Bead Models (BM). This formalism provides an efficient method to account for kinematic constraints. We illustrate, with several examples, to which extent the proposed formulation offers a flexible and versatile framework for the quantitative modeling of flexible fibers deformation and rotation in shear flow, the dynamics of actuated filaments and the propulsion of active swimmers. Furthermore, a new contact model called Gears Model is proposed and successfully tested. It avoids the use of numerical artifices such as repulsive forces between adjacent beads, a source of numerical difficulties in the temporal integration of previous Bead Models

Large-scale simulation of steady and time-dependent active suspensions with the force-coupling method

We present a new development of the force-coupling method (FCM) to address the accurate simulation of a large number of interacting micro-swimmers. Our approach is based on the squirmer model, which we adapt to the FCM framework, resulting in a method that is suitable for simulating semi-dilute squirmer suspensions. Other effects, such as steric interactions, are considered with our model. We test our method by comparing the velocity field around a single squirmer and the pairwise interactions between two squirmers with exact solutions to the Stokes equations and results given by other numerical methods. We also illustrate our method’s ability to describe spheroidal swimmer shapes and biologically-relevant time-dependent swimming gaits. We detail the numerical algorithm used to compute the hydrodynamic coupling between a large collection (10^4–10^5) of micro-swimmers. Using this methodology, we investigate the emergence of polar order in a suspension of squirmers and show that for large domains, both the steady-state polar order parameter and the growth rate of instability are independent of system size. These results demonstrate the effectiveness of our approach to achieve near continuum-level results, allowing for better comparison with experimental measurements while complementing and informing continuum models

Obstacle-induced lateral dispersion and nontrivial trapping of flexible fibers settling in a viscous fluid

The motion of flexible fibers through structured fluidic environments is ubiquitous in nature and industrial applications. Most often, their dynamics results from the complex interplay between internal elastic stresses, contact forces and hydrodynamic interactions with the walls and obstacles. By means of numerical simulations, experiments and analytical predictions, we investigate the dynamics of flexible fibers settling in a viscous fluid embedded with obstacles of arbitrary shapes. We identify and characterize two types of events: trapping and gliding, for which we detail the mechanisms at play. We observe nontrivial trapping conformations on sharp obstacles that result from a subtle balance between elasticity, gravity and friction. In the gliding case, a flexible fiber reorients and drifts sideways after sliding along the obstacle. The subsequent lateral displacement is large compared to the fiber length and strongly depends on its mechanical and geometrical properties. We show how these effects can be leveraged to propose a new strategy to sort particles based on their size and/or elasticity. This approach has the major advantage of being simple to implement and fully passive, since no energy is needed.Comment: 18 pages, 9 figure