Attractors for the motion of a finite-size particle in a cuboidal lid-driven cavity

Abstract

The motion of a finite-size particle in the cuboidal lid-driven cavity flow is investigated experimentally for Reynolds numbers $100$ and $200$ for which the flow is steady. These steady three-dimensional flows exhibit chaotic and regular streamlines, where the latter are confined to Kolmogorov–Arnold–Moser (KAM) tori. The interaction between the moving wall and the particle creates global particle attractors. For neutrally buoyant particles, these attractors are periodic or quasi-periodic, strongly attracting and located in or near KAM tori of the flow. As the density mismatch between particle and fluid increases, buoyancy and inertia become important, and the attractors evolve from those for neutrally buoyant particles, changing their shape, position and attraction rates.