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Harnessing elasticity to generate self-oscillation via an electrohydrodynamic instability

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  12 February 2020

Lailai Zhu Open the ORCID record for Lailai Zhu [Opens in a new window]  and
Howard A. Stone Open the ORCID record for Howard A. Stone [Opens in a new window]
Lailai Zhu
Affiliation:
Department of Mechanical Engineering, National University of Singapore, 117575, Singapore Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ08544, USA Linné Flow Centre and Swedish e-Science Research Centre (SeRC), KTH Mechanics, Stockholm, SE-10044, Sweden
Howard A. Stone*
Affiliation:
Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ08544, USA
*
†Email address for correspondence: hastone@princeton.edu
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Abstract

Under a steady DC electric field of sufficient strength, a weakly conducting dielectric sphere in a dielectric solvent with higher conductivity can undergo spontaneous spinning (Quincke rotation) through a pitchfork bifurcation. We design an object composed of a dielectric sphere and an elastic filament. By solving an elasto-electro-hydrodynamic (EEH) problem numerically, we uncover an EEH instability exhibiting diverse dynamic responses. Varying the bending stiffness of the filament, the composite object displays three behaviours: a stationary state, undulatory swimming and steady spinning, where the swimming results from a self-oscillatory instability through a Hopf bifurcation. By conducting a linear stability analysis incorporating an elastohydrodynamic model, we theoretically predict the growth rates and critical conditions, which agree well with the numerical counterparts. We also propose a reduced model system consisting of a minimal elastic structure which reproduces the EEH instability. The elasto-viscous response of the composite structure is able to transform the pitchfork bifurcation into a Hopf bifurcation, leading to self-oscillation. Our results imply a new way of harnessing elastic media to engineer self-oscillations, and more generally, to manipulate and diversify the bifurcations and the corresponding instabilities. These ideas will be useful in designing soft, environmentally adaptive machines.

JFM classification

Biological Fluid Dynamics: Swimming/flying MHD and Electrohydrodynamics: MHD and Electrohydrodynamics Low-Reynolds-number flows: Low-Reynolds-number flows

Information

Type
JFM Papers
Information
Journal of Fluid Mechanics , Volume 888 , 10 April 2020 , A31
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2020. Published by Cambridge University Press

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