Electro-osmotic flow of Maxwell fluid induced by an alternating electric field in curved rectangular microchannels

Abstract

The electro-osmotic flow of a Maxwell fluid in a rectangular curved microchannel driven by an external alternating electric field is numerically investigated in this work. Some flow field and stream function results are simulated using the spectral method. The combined effects of the Deborah number, angular frequency, curvature ratio, and aspect ratio on fluid flow behaviors are discussed in detail. The results show that the Deborah number retards the diffusion of the mainstream directional velocity from the boundaries to the central region. At the same time, it enhances the secondary flow within the cross section. An increase in angular frequency intensifies velocity oscillations (more peaks and troughs and larger axial velocity amplitudes) and promotes the generation and development of secondary flows. Decreasing the curvature ratio or increasing the aspect ratio will enhance the transverse momentum transport in the cross section and improve the secondary flow.