Elastohydrodynamics of Electromagnetically Actuated Deformable Microfluidic Systems

Fluid structure interaction (FSI) resulting out of flow of Newtonian electrolytic fluid through a parallel plate microchannel having elastic walls has been semi-analytically investigated in this article. The fluid is exposed to external electric fields in the axial and transverse direction, and a magnetic field in the transverse direction. Taking in to account all the participating forces, a comprehensive examination of the two-way interrelationship between the flow hydrodynamics and channel deformation is presented in this article. Considering the case of constant flow rate within the channel, the variation of pressure distribution in the channel has been demonstrated for different flow rates and their effect in channel wall deformation. The velocity profile for different flow rates at different channel sections has also been depicted. For the case of constant pressure gradient in the channel, the channel wall deformation along the channel length has been depicted. The effect of magnetic field to bring about flow enhancement has also been explored in our study. The effect of the elasticity of channel walls on flow dynamics has also been investigated in this article.