Diving into 2024: My New Year's Resolution Journey with Fluid Dynamics Research

Hey, everyone! Welcome back to my vlog. As we step into a brand-new year, I've decided to embark on an exciting journey of exploration and knowledge in the realm of fluid dynamics research. Join me as I dive into the intricacies of fluids and the fascinating phenomena they exhibit.

Setting meaningful New Year's resolutions is crucial, and for me, it's all about pushing the boundaries of my understanding and contributing to the scientific community. Fluid dynamics, with its applications ranging from aerodynamics to environmental studies, beckons with unexplored territories.

My first resolution is to deepen my understanding of fundamental fluid principles. From Bernoulli's equation to Reynolds numbers, I'll be immersing myself in the theoretical foundations that underpin fluid dynamics. Let's unravel the mysteries of how fluids behave and interact, paving the way for groundbreaking discoveries.

Next up, I'm committing to hands-on experimentation. I'll be setting up experiments to observe fluid behaviors in controlled environments, experimenting with different parameters, and documenting the results. Expect some messy but enlightening moments as I navigate the world of fluid dynamics in my makeshift lab.

Collaboration is key in the world of research. Therefore, my third resolution involves networking with experts and fellow enthusiasts. I'll be attending conferences, workshops, and engaging in online forums to exchange ideas, discuss findings, and foster a community that thrives on curiosity and innovation.

Data analysis is the backbone of any research endeavor. My fourth resolution is to master advanced computational techniques for fluid dynamics simulations. Armed with powerful tools, I aim to model complex scenarios, predict fluid behaviors, and enhance our understanding of real-world applications.

Lastly, but certainly not least, I'm committed to sharing my journey with you. Through regular vlogs, I'll provide updates on my progress, share insights gained, and perhaps even showcase some mesmerizing fluid dynamics simulations. Your feedback and engagement will be invaluable in shaping the direction of this research adventure.

So buckle up, fellow science enthusiasts, as we embark on a year filled with fluid dynamics, discovery, and the pursuit of knowledge. Here's to an exciting and intellectually fulfilling 2024! Don't forget to join the conversation in the comments below. Until next time, happy exploring!

Recent Trends in Computational Fluid Dynamics

Computational fluid dynamics (or CFD) is a branch of fluid mechanics. Different types of numerical techniques and data structures used to examine various problems. Fluid flow (liquid or gas) can be described by the conservation laws for mass, momentum, and energy, which are governed by partial differential equations. In order to solve this problem computationally, it is necessary to replace the partial differential equations with algebraic equations. High-speed supercomputers can be used to achieve better solutions. CFD is applicable to a wide range of engineering problems in various fields of natural science, environment and aerospace engineering, biological engineering, industrial system design, and combustion analysis, etc. Computational Fluid Dynamics provides qualitative and quantitative results for fluids flows through numerical methods, mathematical models and software tools.

This Research Topic encourages scholars to present their latest original research or review articles. The analysis of fluid flows can be based on numerical/analytical simulations or experimental data. Submitted manuscripts may deal with the following topics:

- Non-Newtonian/Newtonian Fluids

- Convective heat and mass transfer.

- Steady and unsteady flow problems.

- Multiphase flow simulations.

- Thermodynamics.

- Nanofluids.

- Physiological fluid phenomena in biological systems.

- Analytical, Nonlinear and Approximation Methods

- Turbulence/ Numerical methods

- Entropy generation in fluids

- Nonlinear waves in fluids

We hope that this collection will provide an overall picture and up-to-date findings to readers from the scientific community; ultimately benefiting the industrial sector regarding its specific market niches and end users.

Redefining Fluid Dynamics: Ancient Invention Sparks Modern Breakthrough

The recent breakthrough holds great potential for both medical and industrial applications.

A group of scientists has discovered new laws governing the flow of fluids by conducting experiments on an ancient technology: the drinking straw. This newfound understanding has the potential to enhance fluid management in medical and engineering contexts.

“We found that sipping through a straw defies all the previously known laws for the resistance or friction of flow through a pipe or tube,” explains Leif Ristroph, an associate professor at New York University’s Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences and an author of the study, which appears in the Journal of Fluid Mechanics. “This motivated us to search for a new law that could work for any type of fluid moving at any rate through a pipe of any size.”

The movement of liquids and gases through conduits such as pipes, tubes, and ducts is a common phenomenon in both natural and industrial contexts, including in scenarios like the circulation of blood or the transportation of oil through pipelines.

“The pipe-flow problem has always been one of the most basic and important in the study of fluid mechanics, and in many ways, the field was developed to address this problem,” explains Ristroph, director of NYU’s Applied Mathematics Laboratory, where the research was conducted.

However, in their work, Ristroph and his colleagues found that all known laws relating to pressure and flow rate were accurate only under certain conditions.

To reach this conclusion, they conducted a series of experiments—measurements of flow rate and pressure for metallic pipes of different lengths and diameters using several types of liquid. The goal was to determine how these factors relate to the frictional resistance of the flow going through the pipe.

“Our data showed that the famous and classical laws for flow friction are only accurate for some combinations of flow speeds and pipe sizes,” explains Ristroph. “We mapped out the conditions when the existing laws don’t work well, and we found a good example right under our noses: drinking through a straw.”

Drinking straws are thought to have been used as far back as 5,500 years ago in the early Mesopotamian civilization of Sumeria. But the hydrodynamics of their operation was not previously studied.

The researchers expanded their study to include several kinds of straws—a thin coffee stirrer type, a regular soda type, and a wide bubble tea type—and they performed experiments to determine the friction for flow rates that are typical during drinking.

The data on straws and similarly sized pipes did not match any of the known laws, which are named for their discoverers, the scientists Evangelista Torricelli and Jean Léonard Marie Poiseuille, among others.

The researchers found that each classical law failed because it assumes that the pipe is either very short or very long and that the flow is either very slow or very fast. The in-between cases, including straws, involve complicated factors such as how the flow changes along the length of the pipe and whether it becomes smooth and laminar or rough and turbulent.

Modeling such effects allowed the team to derive a single mathematical formula, and its predictions matched the experimental measurements for all pipes and straws and for all fluids and flow speeds that were tested.

“A universal formula could be very useful, for example, in understanding and modeling blood flow in the circulatory system,” Ristroph observes. “Our veins, arteries, and capillaries are basically pipes with many different diameters, lengths, and flow rates.”

Reference: “Hydrodynamics of finite-length pipes at intermediate Reynolds numbers” by Olivia Pomerenk, Simon Carrillo Segura, Fangning Cao, Jiajie Wu and Leif Ristroph, Journal of Fluid Mechanics.DOI: 10.1017/jfm.2023.99

The paper’s other authors included Olivia Pomerenk, a Courant doctoral student, Simon Carrillo Segura, a doctoral student at NYU’s Tandon School of Engineering, and Fangning Cao and Jiajie Wu—NYU undergraduates at the time of the study.