Latest papers in fluid mechanics

Author(s): Martina Luise, Nicola Sansonetto, and Simone Zuccher

We investigate the reconnection process involving a quantum vortex ring colliding at different angles with a quantum straight vortex line. The dynamics of this phenomenon is well described by the Gross-Pitaevskii equation. Two families of initial configurations are explored, one by varying the angle…

[Phys. Rev. E 114, 035106] Published Fri Sep 18, 2026

Author(s): Anna Luiza M. B. Mattos, Rafael M. Oliveira, Pedro H. A. Anjos, and Eduardo O. Dias

Viscous fingering instabilities reduce the efficiency of immiscible displacement processes in radial Hele-Shaw flows. Time-dependent injection protocols provide a practical means of mitigating these instabilities, and previous studies have shown that linearly increasing injection rates can strongly …

[Phys. Rev. E 114, 035105] Published Thu Sep 10, 2026

Author(s): Atefeh Pour Karimi, Reinhold Kneer, Marc Böttner, Wilko Rohlfs, and Benoit Scheid

Liquid films flowing along fibers can exhibit distinct dripping and jetting regimes, yet the differences in bead-formation mechanisms and the transition between these regimes have received limited attention. By combining experiments with a theoretical model, we discuss the mechanisms governing bead formation in both regimes and introduce a method for identifying and predicting the transition range across different fiber-nozzle geometries. This work advances the fundamental understanding of bead formation and regime transitions in film flows on fibers.

[Phys. Rev. Fluids 11, 094001] Published Wed Sep 09, 2026

Author(s): Mingming Gu, Zilong Deng, and Yongping Chen

For gas mixtures flowing through conical capillaries with small feature sizes, intermolecular collisions compete with ballistic transport. This leads to discrepancies between real flow rates and predicted results by conventional hydraulic methods. A model is established to calculate the flow rates o…

[Phys. Rev. E 114, 035103] Published Tue Sep 08, 2026

Author(s): Ademola Isaac Adebimpe, Sajjad Foroughi, Branko Bijeljic, and Martin J. Blunt

We present a time-dependent pore-network model that couples transient mass transfer in the aqueous phase, capillary pressure heterogeneity, and realistic pore-throat geometries to capture the dynamic evolution of gas clusters during Ostwald ripening in porous media. The model is applied to Bentheime…

[Phys. Rev. E 114, 035104] Published Tue Sep 08, 2026

Author(s): Paul Gauthier, Nabil Retailleau, Yacine Khidas, and Florence Rouyer

In granular films, where grains bridge the two interfaces of a soap film, the liquid pressure controls the transition from bursting to a jammed state. Even more, a single bursting event combines liquid- and solid-like mechanical responses. By identifying both an effective surface viscosity governing the early liquid-like regime and an internal dissipation controlling the late fracture dynamics, we provide a unified physical picture and highlight the differences between granular films and granular rafts. The concepts introduced here may prove relevant for a broad range of systems in which particles and interfaces interact, from particle-laden foams to biological or bio-inspired membranes.

[Phys. Rev. Fluids 11, 094301] Published Tue Sep 08, 2026

Author(s): A. P. Merin and Vinod Srinivasan

Thermal diffusivity measurements in a sheared particle-fluid suspension are performed in a Taylor-Couette cell with outer cylinder rotation. The enhancement in diffusivity follows a power law with Peclet number with an exponent of 0.5 for Peclet numbers below 700 at all volume fractions studied (0.14, 0.22, 0.30 and 0.36). The data do not fit existing theory and are consistent with a model that assumes the formation of a particle-free fluid layer near the inner cylinder which causes deviation from an initially linear behavior at low particle Peclet numbers.

[Phys. Rev. Fluids 11, 094302] Published Tue Sep 08, 2026

Author(s): Bingfei Yan, Eric E. Handy-Cardenas, Kenneth S. Breuer, and Jennifer A. Franck

This study introduces a novel approach for generating isolated vortex gusts in both computational and experimental settings. Utilizing a symmetric airfoil undergoing simultaneous heaving and pitching, this method delivers coherent vortices while minimizing persistent wake disruption downstream. The result is a customizable approach allowing precise, systematic control over vortex strength, orientation, and position.

[Phys. Rev. Fluids 11, 094702] Published Tue Sep 08, 2026

Author(s): Artur Gesla and Eunok Yim

This study investigates the formation of the helical vortex rope in a Francis hydropower turbine by treating it as an unstable vortex breakdown mode in a simplified laminar flow. The vortex rope emerges through a supercritical Hopf bifurcation from an axisymmetric base flow in the draft tube. Without wall friction, a central recirculation zone develops, revealing subcritical solutions and hysteresis under partial-load conditions. The work describes the cyclic formation and collapse of the recirculation bubble as the helical vortex evolves. As flow approaches nominal load, the steady solution branch undergoes a transcritical bifurcation at finite Reynolds number.

[Phys. Rev. Fluids 11, 094701] Published Thu Sep 03, 2026

Author(s): Pim J. Dekker, Christian Diddens, Marjolein N. van der Linden, and Detlef Lohse

Surface tension is frequently measured with the pendant drop method, while the ambient humidity is usually an afterthought. With carefully calibrated experiments and detailed numerical simulations, we show that evaporative cooling lowers the drop temperature by up to 9.5 K which in turn raises the measured surface tension by more than 1 mN/m. Evaporation-driven and Marangoni-induced flows additionally deform the drop, but only marginally. A passive humidity control removes these artifacts entirely and reveals the shallow minimum in the surface tension of aqueous 1,2-hexanediol mixtures.

[Phys. Rev. Fluids 11, 094901] Published Thu Sep 03, 2026

Author(s): Daniela Dávalos Ruedas, R. E. Moctezuma, and J. Rodrigo Vélez-Cordero

Theoretical expressions used to study the assembly of magnetic particles under the action of external magnetic fields are generalized to incorporate carrier fluids with varying viscosity (shear thinning fluids). The theory is essentially local, and the drag force assigned to each particle considers …

[Phys. Rev. E 114, 035102] Published Wed Sep 02, 2026

Author(s): Nianhua Liu and Serhiy Yarusevych

Lifting surfaces operating at aerodynamically low Reynolds numbers often have laminar separation bubbles (LSBs) whose characteristics can significantly affect performance. We investigate the effect of localized surface roughness, which might form due to manufacturing, local contamination, damage or icing, on LSBs. We find that the localized roughness eliminates downstream laminar separation and modifies the LSB topology and dynamics over a substantial spanwise region extending well beyond the roughness itself. The associated effect on aerodynamic performance is considerably greater than would be expected based solely on the relative spanwise extent of the localized roughness.

[Phys. Rev. Fluids 11, 093901] Published Tue Sep 01, 2026

Author(s): Lin-Ling Li (李临玲), Juan-Cheng Yang (阳倦成), and Ming-Jiu Ni (倪明玖)

Compared with a static liquid film, gas jet impingement on a flowing liquid metal film produces a shallower cavity and a strongly asymmetric profile through upstream liquid accumulation. Counter-current coupling upstream and co-current coupling downstream cause the wave-amplitude response to jet momentum to weaken upstream but strengthen downstream as the liquid Reynolds number increases. Under pulsating jets, an attenuation coefficient correlates wave amplitude with jet momentum and characterizes a pronounced spatial asymmetry in momentum transfer. These findings clarify how gas jets influence the liquid metal film flow and provide a reference for the design of liquid metal divertors.

[Phys. Rev. Fluids 11, 094801] Published Tue Sep 01, 2026

Author(s): Vladimir Rosenhaus and Daniel Schubring

We study wave turbulence in systems with two special properties: a large number of fields (large N) and a nonlinear interaction that is strongly local in momentum space. The first property allows us to find the kinetic equation at all interaction strengths—both weak and strong, at leading order in 1…

[Phys. Rev. E 114, 035101] Published Tue Sep 01, 2026

Author(s): Marek Stastna and Andrew P. Grace

This article presents a simple to implement algorithm for detecting strong cabbeling in stratified fluids with a nonlinear equation of state. The algorithm is used to identify the manner in which the arrested development of the Rayleigh-Taylor instability occurs in the strongly cabbeling regime.

[Phys. Rev. Fluids 11, 084505] Published Mon Aug 31, 2026

Author(s): Sedat Tardu and Benjamin Arrondeau

Large staggered roughness elements in the entrance region of a subcritical channel flow generate intense turbulent eddies that gradually break down as the flow progresses into the downstream smooth channel (SC) of the configuration studied here. This flow combines several sources of complexity: surface roughness, a rough-to-smooth step change and relaminarization. The characteristics of the turbulence decay along the SC centerline agree reasonably well with those of homogeneous isotropic turbulence. Owing to the slow rate of relaminarization, the Nusselt number averaged over large streamwise distances in the SC remains close to that of an equivalent fully developed turbulent channel flow.

[Phys. Rev. Fluids 11, 084611] Published Mon Aug 31, 2026

Author(s): H. A. J. Middleton-Spencer, B. McCanna, D. Proment, and H. M. Price

Vortex reconnections are fundamental to quantum fluids. They are reconnections of quantum vortices defined by a topological change and irreversible energy transfer given by universal scaling laws, leading to quantum turbulence. We generalize this mechanism by studying reconnections of extra-dimensional quantum vortices. We find a new range of vortex interactions depending on their initial orientation – a four-dimensional generalization to the known three-dimensional case; vortex interactions with no reconnections; and a new class reconnection that keeps the same scaling law with no energy transfer, suggesting a form of reversible reconnection not allowed in three-dimensional systems.

[Phys. Rev. Fluids 11, 084701] Published Mon Aug 31, 2026

Author(s): Prasoon Suchandra and Shabnam Raayai-Ardakani

We study flow past V-formations of cylinders, inspired by migratory birds’ flight, examining how formation angle affects the drag of both individuals and the group. Using particle image velocimetry in a water tunnel, we evaluate the impact of changing angles on complex wake-wake/wake-body interactions, quantifying mean and fluctuating quantities, and analyzing vortex dynamics. We find that members with streamwise overlap experience major reductions in the drag force compared to a solo cylinder. Our study establishes a baseline for probing flow past groups of complex bodies (like drones) and demonstrates how optimizing formations can achieve desired performance goals, such as minimum drag.

[Phys. Rev. Fluids 11, 084702] Published Mon Aug 31, 2026

Author(s): Peng Wang, Jiawei Han, Kun Xue, and Yu Guo

We present a numerical study of shock-induced dispersal in dense, flexible fiber curtains using a coupled discrete element method–computational fluid dynamics (DEM–CFD) approach. The fiber curtains exhibit distinct particle dynamics compared to spherical particle curtains. Increasing the fiber aspect ratio and reducing flexibility enhance geometric interlocking and prolong clustering, thereby increasing resistance to shock propagation. Finally, we modify a scaling law using an effective fiber aspect ratio to predict the temporal evolution of curtain expansion, accounting for fiber elongation and significant bending deformation.

[Phys. Rev. Fluids 11, 084302] Published Fri Aug 28, 2026

Author(s): Francisco Monteiro, Tommaso De Maria, Samuel Ahizi, Ramon Abarca, Giuseppe C. A. Caridi, and Miguel A. Mendez

Vertical accelerations can amplify small free-surface disturbances into strongly nonlinear sloshing through parametric resonance, yet the resulting regimes remain poorly characterized in horizontal cylindrical tanks. While the classical Mathieu equation predicts the onset of parametric instability, here, high-speed experiments, combined with data-driven modal analysis and classification, reveal nonlinear responses that develop beyond the instability threshold. The resulting dimensionless regime maps organize stable, longitudinal, breaking, and mixed-mode dynamics across different fill levels, exposing the rich flow phenomenology surrounding the primary parametric-instability region.

[Phys. Rev. Fluids 11, 084804] Published Fri Aug 28, 2026