Trapping characteristics of magnetic rod-like particles flowing in a cylindrical pipe by means of a non-uniform magnetic field (Brownian dynamics simulations)

Abstract

We have elucidated the feasibility of trapping magnetic rod-like particles that flow in a cylindrical pipe in terms of a non-uniform magnetic field. We have performed Brownian dynamics (BD) simulations in order to clarify the influence that various factors have on the attachment or trapping characteristics of magnetic rod-like particles to the poles. The employment of a local linearisation approximation enables us to apply the BD method that was fully-developed for a simple shear flow to the present Hagen-Poiseuille flow. In the case of a sufficiently small magnetic interaction between the particles, numerous rod-like particles may attach to the magnetic poles if the influence of a non-uniform magnetic field is sufficiently more dominant than that of the flow field, otherwise, the particles flow away along the centreline of the cylindrical pipe. If the magnetic interactions are sufficiently more dominant than both the flow field and the non-uniform magnetic field, the particles aggregate to form densely-packed clusters that flow away along the centreline area of the pipe without being trapped at the poles. In the situation of insufficient magnetic interactions, thin chain-like clusters may be formed from several anchored particles trapped to the poles and incline in the downstream direction.