微通道内液-液多相流数值模拟研究进展

Progress in numerical simulation of multiphase flow in microchannels

液滴微流控技术在化学化工、生物医学等领域具有良好的应用前景,而微通道内的液-液多相流动则是液滴微流控技术中最常见的流动现象,深入研究其机理及其内在规律对相关装置与过程的优化设计具有重要的指导意义。本文系统地综述了研究微通道液-液多相流常用数值研究方法,回顾了连续力学方法与介观动理学方法的研究进展,详细介绍了界面追踪方法与界面捕捉方法的特点以及常用模型,讨论了多种模型的应用情况,论述并对比了不同模型的优势与限制。为进一步开展微通道液-液多相流行为规律及其内在机理的研究提供有益借鉴。微通道内多相流动涉及多种流体与界面的相互耦合,应进一步深入研究在模型简化的基础上实现更精确的界面与流体动力学行为描述。

Droplet-based microfluidic has promising prospects in chemical engineering and biomedicine. Liquid-liquid multiphase flow is the most common flow condition in microchannels, which is relevant in control of droplet dynamics. Thorough research on characteristics of the fluid dynamics is essential in the design of optimized microfluidic devices. A comprehensive review of numerical methods commonly used is presented in this paper. Classified by continuum approaches and lattice-Boltzmann approaches, recent progresses in numerical simulations of liquid-liquid multiphase flow in microchannels are covered. The interface tracking and interface capturing methods are particularly discussed and various numerical models based on the two schemes are introduced. The applications of popular models and numerical results are reviewed with comparisons of their advantages and limitations. The conclusions could be an effective theoretical support for hydrodynamics of interface behaviors in microscale. In addition, multi phase flow coupled with complex interactions of the interface is involved in microehannels, the mechanisms of many phenomenons are still waiting to be revealed. And more accurate description of the interface and the fluid dynamics based on models that require less computation cost is the tendency of numerical simulation on fluid flow in microchannels.