| EPSRC Reference: |
GR/S45409/01 |
| Title: |
Computational modelling and design of responsive industrial fluids |
| Principal Investigator: |
Louis, Professor AA |
| Other Investigators: |
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| Project Partners: |
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| Department: |
Chemistry |
| Organisation: |
University of Cambridge |
| Scheme: |
Faraday (PreFEC) |
| Starts: |
01 June 2003 |
Ends: |
31 May 2006 |
Value (£): |
137,006
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| EPSRC Research Topic Classifications: |
| Bioprocess Engineering |
Complex fluids & soft solids |
| Rheology |
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| Panel History: |
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Summary on Grant Application Form |
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Under certain thermodynamic conditions, wormlike micelles can be formed in solutions through self-assembly of amphiphilic molecules. The size and structure of these micelles is governed, at the lowest level, by an interplay of energy (interactions between the solvent, the polar head-groups, and the hydrophobic tails) and entropy. Higher in the hierarchy, entanglements between the wormlike micelles can give rise to a network structure, which imparts a high viscosity and elasticity to the fluid. These properties are critical to the successful design of viscoelastic surfactant fluids for oilfield applications. For optimal performance, it is important to understand the strong coupling between shear flow and structure/phase behaviour of such fluids. Moreover, recently observed phenomena such as shear banding, shear induced structure, and thixotropy are not well understood.W a propose to attack these problems by means of computer simulations. Since it is impossible to reach sufficiently large time scales to study the most interesting rheological phenomena by using atomistic molecular dynamics simulations, we will describe the self-assembling process of amphiphiles on a mesoscopic scale. To bridge the gap between the molecular and mesoscopic interactions, we will employ a number of novel statistical mechanical coarse-graining techniques. Both transient effects and the steadv state will be studied.
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Key Findings |
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This information can now be found on Gateway to Research (GtR) http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk
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Potential use in non-academic contexts |
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This information can now be found on Gateway to Research (GtR) http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk
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Impacts |
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| Description |
This information can now be found on Gateway to Research (GtR) http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk |
| Summary |
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| Date Materialised |
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Sectors submitted by the Researcher |
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This information can now be found on Gateway to Research (GtR) http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk
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| Project URL: |
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| Further Information: |
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| Organisation Website: |
http://www.cam.ac.uk |