Numerical Study on the Behavior of an Elastic Capsule in Channel Flow Using Immersed Boundary Method

Abstract

The study of motion and dynamic behavior of elastic capsules in Poiseuille flow in a channel has become an interesting topic of research because of the wide range of applications in the field of biomedical engineering. The behavior of an elastic capsule in an externally applied flow is challenging because of the large displacement fluid–elastic structure interaction involved. In this work, we develop a computational model to capture the physics of the motion and behavior of an elastic capsule in Poiseuille flow in a channel using an immersed boundary finite volume method. The circular-shaped capsule is divided into a number of immersed boundary (IB) points. We create elastic links structure between IB points to incorporate tension/compression and bending. The flow is governed by continuity and Navier–Stokes equations which are discretized using staggered grid-based finite volume method. Dirac delta function is used to interpolate between solid (capsule) and fluid grids. Simulations are first carried out to describe the instantaneous position and shape of the capsule at a fixed Reynolds number flow in the channel. It is observed that the initial location has a significant influence in determining the final shape and position of the capsule. Further, through numerical simulations, the position and shapes of circular capsule in center-line motion with different stiffness constants for links are obtained and compared. It is found that lower elastic spring constant together with lower bending stiffness constant leads to larger deformation of the capsule because of less resistance to the flow. Also, the outcome of different Reynolds numbers (Re) on the behavior of the capsule is investigated for the center-line motion. It is noticed that the motion of the capsule retards with the increase in Reynolds number. Also, for higher value of Re, the capsule deforms less. For lower value of Re, the capsule deforms to a large extent. © 2020, Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.