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Particle Tracking Velocimetry (PTV) is a Lagrange-based flow visualization technique that tracks the motion of multiple particles or granules simultaneously. With the widespread application of three-dimensional (3D) particle imaging systems, 3D PTV algorithms have attracted considerable interest, whereas many 3D algorithms are developed from the corresponding 2D algorithms; moreover, compared with 3D algorithms, 2D algorithms are more suitable for real-time flow monitoring in industry. This paper proposes a 2D PTV algorithm based on the Voronoi diagram (VD) that is optimized by the minimum enclosing ellipse (MEE); then a re-matching process based on a homemade method called Quasi-Parallel Correction (QPC) is developed to correct the abnormal results produced by PTV at large inter-frame particle displacement. This PTV is thereby named MQ-PTV. MQ-PTV is then employed for reconstructing a granular flow made of dense polypropylene particles along a declined chute, an aeolian sand flow over sand bed, the migration of a barchans swarm and the motion of stars, thus confirming its practicability in a wide variety of particle motion reconstruction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Spot fires pose a major risk and add to the already complex physics, which makes fire spread so hard to predict, especially in the wildland urban interface. Firebrands can not only cross fuel breaks and thwart other suppression efforts but also directly damage infrastructure and block evacuation routes. Transport models and computational fluid dynamics tools often make simplifications when predicting spot fire risk, but there is a relative lack of experimental data to validate such parameterizations. To this end, we present a field experiment performed at the University of California Berkeley Blodgett Research Forest in California where we recorded the flame and firebrands emanating from a nighttime hand-drawn pile fire using high-frequency imaging. We used image-processing to characterize the fire intensity and turbulence as well as particle tracking velocimetry to measure ejected firebrand kinematics as they are lofted by the plume. We further collected embers that settled around the fire at varying distances and measured their size, shape, density, and settling distributions. We also examine existing physics-based time-averaged models of firebrand lofting and note discrepancies between such models, often used due to their speed and simplicity, and our experimental observations. Finally, we discuss some implications our observations could have on future modeling efforts by considering the time-dependent fire dynamics, intermittency in the plume turbulence, and in the firebrand generation rate. To the best of our knowledge, these are the first in situ observations of firebrand generation and lofting from representative fuels, addressing a major source of data gap and uncertainty in the wildland fire literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Particle image velocimetry and particle tracking velocimetry (PTV) have developed from two-dimensional two-component (2D2C) velocity vector measurements to 3D3C measurements. Rainbow particle tracking velocimetry is a low-cost 3D3C measurement technique adopting a single color camera. However, the vector acquisition rate is not so high. To increase the number of acquired vectors, this paper proposes a high probability and long-term tracking method. First, particles are tracked in a raw picture instead of in three-dimensional space. The tracking is aided by the color information. Second, a particle that temporarily cannot be tracked due to particle overlap is compensated for using the positional information at times before and after. The proposed method is demonstrated for flow under a rotating disk with different particle densities and velocities. The use of the proposed method improves the tracking rate, number of continuous tracking steps, and number of acquired velocity vectors. The method can be applied under the difficult conditions of high particle density (0.004 particles per pixel) and large particle movement (maximum of 60 pix). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Coastal hydrodynamics and morphodynamics integrate the effects of small‐scale fluid‐sediment interactions; yet, these small‐scale processes are not well understood. To investigate sediment trapping by turbulent coherent structures or vortices, the transport of coarse sand over ripples was analyzed in a small‐oscillatory flow tunnel with phase‐separated Particle Image and Tracking Velocimetry. Results from one of the first direct measurements of vortex‐trapped sand grains under oscillatory flows are presented. The vortices mobilized sand grains along the ripple slopes just prior to flow reversal and transported the suspended sediment grains. During several flow cycles, some sand grains were temporarily trapped in the vortex, prescribing semi‐circular trajectories off‐center from the vortex core in quadrants of the vortex that were closest to the ripple slope, as illustrated by Nielsen (1992, https://doi.org/10.1142/1269). Comparisons of the horizontal sediment grain velocity with the horizontal fluid velocity yielded a linear relationship with a slope of 0.87. The vertical grain velocities also varied linearly with the vertical fluid velocity with a slope of approximately 1 and an offset of −0.08 m s−1 ${\mathrm{s}}^{-1}$. The offset is close to the still water settling velocity for coarse sand grains, as hypothesized during vortex trapping. Additionally, estimates of the off‐center distance, between the centers of the semi‐circular sediment paths and vortex cores, compared well with the ratio of the settling velocity to the radian frequency of the vortex yielding a linear regression slope of 0.99. Improved understanding of vortex trapping effects on sediment dynamics may decrease uncertainty in model predictions of large‐scale coastal hydrodynamics and sediment transport. Plain Language Summary: Large‐scale coastal processes integrate the effects of small‐scale fluid‐sediment interactions; yet, these small‐scale processes are not well understood. Nielsen (1992, https://doi.org/10.1142/1269) hypothesized that suspended sand grains over ripples could get caught in a vortex under certain hydrodynamic conditions, in a process called vortex trapping. In this article, we present results from one of the first direct measurements of vortex‐trapped sand grains under oscillatory flows. Vortices along the ripple slope mobilized sand grains prior to flow reversal and transported the suspended grains. During several flow cycles, some sand grains were temporarily trapped in the vortex and moved along semi‐circular paths off‐center from the vortex core in sections of the vortex that were closest to the ripple slope, as illustrated by Nielsen (1992, https://doi.org/10.1142/1269). Comparisons of the sediment grain velocity with the fluid velocity yielded a linear relationship. Additionally, the distance between the center of the semi‐circular sediment paths and the center of the vortex cores agreed with the theory. Improved understanding of the effects of vortex trapping on sediment dynamics may decrease uncertainty in the predictions of large‐scale coastal hydrodynamics and sediment transport models, which do not typically account for this small‐scale process. Key Points: Observations of vortex‐trapped grains suggest delayed settling of advected grains, as well as delayed advection of grains mobilized from the bedQuantitative comparisons of vortex‐trapped sand grains compared well with theoretical formulations by Nielsen (1992, https://doi.org/10.1142/1269) for a forced vortexImproved understanding of vortex trapping effects on sediment dynamics may decrease uncertainty in large‐scale coastal model predictions [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research aims to experimentally characterize cooling, clogging and jamming of a dry granular flow in a chute partially obstructed by a stopping wall with two slits adjacent to the side walls. We ensemble‐average velocities, determined with Particle Tracking Velocimetry, and its fluctuations, to compute mean flow and granular temperature fields. Full chute‐wide jamming is triggered by the formation of stable arch‐like clogging structures in front of the slits. The statistical distribution of the clogging instant is not heavy‐tailed, which indicates that clogging occurs only when the flow through the slits is liquid‐like. An upstream‐progressing jamming wave eventually forms, similar to that observed in fully obstructed chutes. There is no triple point anywhere, since the flow cools down to a granular liquid before jamming. We identified three main stages of jamming wave propagation. The initial buildup is characterized by high values of the upstream Froude number, slow progression, and transformation of kinetic into potential energy. This occurs with significant granular head losses, as particles attempt to flow over the jam. In the second stage, accretion becomes dominant, characterized by smaller head losses and, consequently, higher values of the jamming wave celerity. In the third stage, the jamming wave propagates against a cooler but faster flow that pushes against the jam, slightly increasing the wave strength. Accretion is the main mechanism of jammed mass increase, justifying a further increase of wave acceleration. The macroscopic aspects of the jamming wave dynamics can be described, as a first approximation, by shallow‐water theory. Key Points: The flow through the slits enters the clogging regime as it cools down. Chute‐wide generalized jamming results from cloggingThere are no triple points in the system. Jamming only incorporates particles that have cooled to liquid‐like behaviorThe dynamics of the jamming wave exhibit three stages, with different roles of accretion and upward dissipative modes of jamming [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract This study investigates a novel microfluidic mixing technique that uses the resonant oscillation of coalescent droplets. During the vertical contact-separation process, solutes are initially separated as a result of the combined effects of diffusion and gravity. We show that the application of alternating current (AC) voltage to microelectrodes below the droplets causes a resonant oscillation, which enhances the even distribution of the solute. The difference in concentration between the top and bottom droplets exhibits frequency dependence and indicates the existence of a particular AC frequency that results in a homogeneous concentration. This frequency corresponds to the resonance frequency of the droplet oscillation that is determined using particle tracking velocimetry. To understand the mixing process, a phenomenological model based on the equilibrium between surface tension, viscosity, and electrostatic force was developed. This model accurately predicted the resonance frequency of droplet flow and was consistent with the experimental results. These results suggest that the resonant oscillation of droplets driven by AC voltage significantly enhances the diffusion of solutes, which is an effective approach to microfluid mixing.

This study investigates a novel microfluidic mixing technique that uses the resonant oscillation of coalescent droplets. During the vertical contact-separation process, solutes are initially separated as a result of the combined effects of diffusion and gravity. We show that the application of alternating current (AC) voltage to microelectrodes below the droplets causes a resonant oscillation, which enhances the even distribution of the solute. The difference in concentration between the top and bottom droplets exhibits frequency dependence and indicates the existence of a particular AC frequency that results in a homogeneous concentration. This frequency corresponds to the resonance frequency of the droplet oscillation that is determined using particle tracking velocimetry. To understand the mixing process, a phenomenological model based on the equilibrium between surface tension, viscosity, and electrostatic force was developed. This model accurately predicted the resonance frequency of droplet flow and was consistent with the experimental results. These results suggest that the resonant oscillation of droplets driven by AC voltage significantly enhances the diffusion of solutes, which is an effective approach to microfluid mixing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Event-based pixel sensors asynchronously report changes in log-intensity in microsecond-order resolution. Its exceptional speed, cost effectiveness, and sparse event stream make it an attractive imaging modality for particle tracking velocimetry. In this work, we propose a causal Kalman filter-based particle event velocimetry (KF-PEV). Using the Kalman filter model to track the events generated by the particles seeded in the flow medium, KF-PEV yields the linear least squares estimate of the particle track velocities corresponding to the flow vector field. KF-PEV processes events in a computationally efficient and streaming manner (i.e., causal and iteratively updating). Our simulation-based benchmarking study with synthetic particle event data confirms that the proposed KF-PEV outperforms the conventional frame-based particle image/tracking velocimetry as well as the state-of-the-art event-based particle velocimetry methods. In a real-world water tunnel event-based sensor data experiment performed on what we believe to be the widest field view ever reported, KF-PEV accurately predicted the expected flow field of the SD7003 wing, including details such as the lower velocity in the wake and the flow separation around the underside of an angled wing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We propose a method to obtain super-resolution of turbulent statistics for three-dimensional ensemble particle tracking velocimetry (EPTV). The method is "meshless" because it does not require the definition of a grid for computing derivatives, and it is "binless" because it does not require the definition of bins to compute local statistics. The method combines the constrained radial basis function (RBF) formalism introduced Sperotto et al. (Meas Sci Technol 33:094005, 2022) with an ensemble trick for the RBF regression of flow statistics. The computational cost for the RBF regression is alleviated using the partition of unity method (PUM). Three test cases are considered: (1) a 1D illustrative problem on a Gaussian process, (2) a 3D synthetic test case reproducing a 3D jet-like flow, and (3) an experimental dataset collected for an underwater jet flow at Re = 6750 using a four-camera 3D PTV system. For each test case, the method performances are compared to traditional binning approaches such as Gaussian weighting (Agüí and Jiménez in JFM 185:447–468, 1987), local polynomial fitting (Agüera et al. in Meas Sci Technol 27:124011, 2016), as well as binned versions of RBFs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Particle streak velocimetry (PSV) is a Lagrangian velocity measurement method based on streak imaging of moving particles and is regarded as the origin of particle image velocimetry (PIV) and particle tracking velocimetry (PTV). Recently, the PSV technique has undergone further developments, realizing measurements of three velocity components in three dimensions (3D3C), by combining with stereoscopic observation, defocused imaging, light field photography and /or holography. Moreover, image processing algorithms based on deep learning have been successfully applied to PSV. Compared with PIV and PTV, the PSV technique can exhibit several advantages, including extending the upper limit of the velocity measurement range under the same equipment conditions, measuring with lower illumination intensity, often an overall lower equipment complexity and cost for the same measuring requirement, as well as avoiding the particle matching problems of PTV. However, the PSV method also has obstacles to overcome, such as directional ambiguity and the difficulty in identifying streak crossings. For the directional ambiguity problem, there are currently time-coding, color-coding, brightness-coding and determination methods using additional image frames that can be employed. The main application areas of PSV currently include microfluidics, high-velocity flows and large-scale flow field measurements. This review presents the state of the art of PSV and summarizes advantages, disadvantages, accuracy, complexity and application of various configurations. The configurations discussed are focused on those measuring three velocity components and several examples are described in which PSV can be advantageously applied. The review concludes with some future developments that can be anticipated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Phase-resolved volumetric velocity measurements of a pulsed jet are conducted by means of three-dimensional particle tracking velocimetry (PTV). The resulting scattered and relatively sparse data are densely reconstructed by adopting physics-informed neural networks (PINNs), here regularized by the Navier–Stokes equations. It is shown that the assimilation remains robust even at low particle densities (ppp < 10 − 3 ) where the mean particle distance is larger than 10% of the outlet diameter. This is achieved by enforcing compliance with the governing equations, thereby leveraging the spatiotemporal evolution of the measured flow field. Thus, the PINN reconstructs unambiguously velocity, vorticity, and pressure fields, enabling a robust identification of vortex structures with a level of detail not attainable with conventional methods (binning) or more advanced data assimilation techniques (vortex-in-cell). The results of this article suggest that the PINN methodology is inherently suited to the assimilation of PTV data, in particular under conditions of severe data sparsity encountered in experiments with limited control of the seeding concentration and/or distribution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mathematical models based on inviscid flow theory are effective at predicting the aerodynamic forces on large-scale aircraft. Avian flight, however, is characterized by smaller sizes, slower speeds, and increased influence of viscous effects associated with lower Reynolds numbers. Therefore, inviscid mathematical models of avian flight should be used with caution. The assumptions used in such models, such as thin wings and streamlined bodies, may be violated by birds, potentially introducing additional error. To investigate the applicability of the existing models to calculate the aerodynamic performance of bird flight, we compared predictions using simulated wakes with those calculated directly from forces on the bird surface, both derived from computational fluid dynamics of a high-fidelity barn owl geometry in free gliding flight. Two lift models and two drag models are assessed. We show that the generalized Kutta–Joukowski model, corrected by the streamwise velocity, can predict not only the lift but also span loading well. Drag was predicted best by a drag model based on the conservation of fluid momentum in a control volume. Finally, we estimated force production for three raptor species across nine gliding flights by applying the best lift model to wake flow fields measured with particle tracking velocimetry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High spatial resolution and high accuracy estimation of 3D velocity fields are important for tomographic particle image velocimetry (Tomo-PIV), especially when measuring complex flow fields with delicate 3D structures. However, the widely used cross-correlation-based methods have limited spatial resolution, while the recently developed optical flow-based methods have low robustness and are sensitive to particle volume reconstruction errors. Therefore, 3D velocity estimation methods that simultaneously exhibit high resolution and robustness must be developed. In this study, we propose a novel velocity estimation method for Tomo-PIV measurement using the guided filter-based 3D hybrid variational optical flow (GF-HVOF) method to achieve high spatial resolution and highly accurate measurement of 3D flow field structure. First, we propose a novel L1-norm regularization term based on the Helmholtz decomposition theorem to preserve the divergence and vorticity of the fluid flow. Second, we propose a guided-filter-based constraint term using the result of the cross-correlation-based method as the guided flow field to improve the robustness of the optical flow method. Third, we propose a hybrid constraint term based on particle tracking velocimetry (PTV) method and a spatially weighted data term to reduce the effect of ghost particles and discrete errors generated during the reconstruction of particle volumes. The newly proposed hybrid method combines the advantages of optical-flow-based and cross-correlation-based methods and corrects the flow field using the PTV method. Velocity fields are estimated over synthetic and experimental particle volumes. The results show that the newly proposed GF-HVOF method achieves better performance and greater measurement accuracy than existing 3D fluid motion estimation methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ice crystal icing in aero-engines poses a significant threat to aircraft flight safety, and investigating the correlation between ice crystal size and velocity in icing wind tunnels is essential for correlating ground tests with flight conditions. In this paper, a digital holographic particle tracking velocimetry system is developed and integrated with an icing wind tunnel, and the ice crystal size and velocity are simultaneously measured in experiments at four different wind speeds. The velocity difference between the ice crystal and wind has been experimentally observed, and it increases with both the ice crystal size and wind speed. The normalized velocities of the ice crystals by the wind speeds decrease with size, and the maximum velocity difference in the experiments reaches 28% of the wind speed. Additionally, quantitative correlations between ice crystal size and normalized velocity based on the power function and polynomial model are established. The relationship between the particle Reynolds number of ice crystal and size is also analyzed, resulting in the development of a model based on the power function, and the power index ranges from 1.51 to 1.64. These findings will provide valuable assistance in the calibration and commissioning of the ice crystal simulation system in icing wind tunnels, as well as in exploring the correlation between ground icing tests and flight and in developing corresponding models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The motion state of a particle is a crucial aspect of sediment transport problems. In this paper, we conceptualized three states: stillness, "transport", and "non‐transport", considering that not all the particle motions contribute significantly to the mean sediment transport rate. Starting from a data set of bed‐load particle tracks obtained from particle tracking velocimetry, we removed the bias from experimental uncertainty and applied one‐dimensional, instantaneous, and non‐parametric criteria for distinguishing the states. We described the kinematics of particles in transport and non‐transport states, presenting some sample trajectories and the distributions of particle velocity and acceleration. While the transport state presents a clear distinction between stream‐wise and transverse particle velocity, the non‐transport state is related to isotropic particle jiggling, and does not significantly contribute to the bed‐load rate. Vice‐versa, the particle motions in the non‐transport state are relevant for other summary indicators of the transport process, such as the mean number of moving particles and mean particle velocity. We discuss how applying the proposed non‐parametric criterion for state separation is beneficial compared to parameter‐dependent alternatives available in the literature. Finally, we provide an outlook on possible applications of our concept for the investigation of other sediment transport processes (incipient motion, solid‐fluid interface, creeping flow). Plain Language Summary: Bed‐load is the transport of sediment particles close to a channel bed. When the sediment transport rate is low, individual particles can be alternatively in motion or stillness. Quantitative determination of relevant quantities (number of moving particles, mean velocity, and others) may require a definition of criteria based on which a particle should be considered in motion or not at a given time instant (an issue far from being straightforward). Furthermore, particles can jiggle around fixed positions without contributing to downstream transport. In this work, we proposed criteria for labeling the stillness and motion states. The latter is split further into two states: "transport" (associated with neat downstream motion) and "non‐transport" (associated with jiggling). Eventually, we characterized the properties of the states of motion and their contributions to global indicators of the bed‐load process. We discuss the appropriateness of our definitions compared to alternatives available in the literature and the usefulness of state separation for bed‐load processes investigation. Key Points: We distinguish "transport" (T) and "non‐transport" (NT) states of particle motion and analyze them separatelyThe NT state involves isotropic jiggling of particles that do not contribute to the sediment dischargeThe NT movements impact considerably the expected values of number of moving particles and velocity [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the past three decades, optical visualization measurements based on the Refractive Index Match (RIM) method have played a significant role in the experimental studies of fluid-solid interaction. The RIM method, which coordinates the refractive indices of the liquid and solid materials in the experiment, dramatically reduces the observation error due to optical refraction. However, the existing literature on RIM has not systematically reviewed the various applications of this technique. This review aims to fill this gap by providing a comprehensive overview of the RIM technique, examining its role in material selection for fluid-solid interaction studies, and scrutinizing its applications across various engineering disciplines. The paper begins with a brief introduction to the RIM technique and then turns to material selection and its various applications in fluid-solid interaction. It also enumerates and analyzes specific RIM-based optical measurement techniques such as Laser Doppler Velocimetry (LDA), Particle Tracking Velocimetry (PTV), and Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) from various research perspectives in previous studies. In addition, it summarizes RIM formulations categorized by different applications in liquid-solid interaction fields. RIM-based measurement techniques generally offer intuitive, non-intrusive, cost-effective, and convenient advantages over traditional methods. The paper also critically evaluates the strengths and limitations of different materials used in RIM experiments and suggests directions for future research, emphasizing the need to develop environmentally friendly and cost-effective RIM materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In aquatic sediments, active ventilation of burrows is an important component of sediment metabolism, transporting solutes across the sediment–water interface. Within a burrow, the temporal and spatial structure of the flow velocity can dictate the flux of solutes across the burrow walls. However, it is difficult to measure the fine-scale flow dynamics within a burrow due to the opacity of marine sediments. Here, we allowed a nereid polychaete Alitta succinea, a cosmopolitan deposit feeder found in brackish to marine soft sediments, to construct burrows in a transparent, elastic sediment analog. This allowed the measurement of the temporal velocity structure of flow in the burrow using particle tracking velocimetry. We find that the flow within the burrow of this piston-pumping polychaete is unsteady and that oscillations in flow velocity are damped with distance along the tube. We also show that the flow velocity in a tube scales with worm size. Conversely, neither the unsteadiness of flow oscillations nor the stroke frequency of the worm pump scale with worm size. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, efficient microfluidic flow rate tuning based on the asymmetric flow of nematic liquid crystal 5CB under a horizontal temperature gradient is studied. Rectangular microchannels with the width of 100 μm are fabricated through soft lithography and treated with homeotropic surface anchoring conditions. Polarized optical microscopy is applied to explore the unique optical anisotropic characteristics of the nematic liquid crystal. The asymmetric velocity profiles in the microchannel are obtained by particle tracking velocimetry. The effects of temperature, flow rate, and aspect ratio on the velocity profile and split ratio of the asymmetric flow are quantitatively studied for the first time, while the mechanism of the flow asymmetry of the nematic liquid crystal is discussed. The results show that the asymmetric flow of the nematic liquid crystal occurs after the horizontal temperature gradient is applied, with the velocity in the heated region markedly higher than its counterpart. The split ratio of the asymmetric flow increases with the increase in the temperature gradient and the decrease in the flow rate. The aspect ratio influences the asymmetric flow through approaches of average velocity and surface anchoring strength, while the former is more distinct. The impacts of temperature gradient, flow rate, and aspect ratio on the flow asymmetry of nematic liquid crystals are caused by the coupling between physical properties, velocity field, and director field. Microchannels based on the asymmetric flow characteristics of nematic liquid crystals can act as a novel kind of temperature-controlled microvalve to achieve efficient microfluidic flow tuning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Particle tracking velocity has reached a high level of maturity in time-resolved measurements since the introduction and development of the Shake-The-Box algorithm. The effectiveness of this approach lies, in part, in its ability to exploit the temporal coherence of particle trajectories to reject the ghost particles while increasing the density of true particles. However, certain situations may prevent time-resolved measurements. In those cases, a Two-Pulse configuration is often the only option. This raises a challenge with regard to the capacity in separating the ghost from the true particles due to the lack of long-term trajectories. This article proposes a new approach to solve this problem using the coherent point drift (CPD) method. This method identifies a spatially coherent deformation field that models the transformation between two correlated sets of points. In the context of particle tracking velocimetry, the imposed spatial coherence of this calculation is believed to act in the same way as the temporal coherence that made Shake-The-Box successful. The CPD is governed by three parameters whose optimal values have been evaluated in the present contribution. These values were found to be weakly sensitive to the characteristics of the flow under study, ensuring that this method is robust without further tuning of the parameters. The method is then compared with the Two-Pulse implementation of Shake-The-Box (2P-STB) available in Davis 10.2. For this purpose, sets of realistic images were generated at two successive times for different configurations based of synthetically generated turbulent flows. The Iterative-Particle-Reconstruction in Davis 10.2 was then used to extract the list of particles to be processed by CPD. The comparison shows a better recall with 2P-STB than CPD, especially for large time intervals between frames, but an overall better rejection of ghost particles by CPD than 2P-STB, which was the expected benefit of this method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The fractionation in microchannels is a promising approach for the delivery of microparticles in narrow property distributions. The underlying mechanisms of the channels are however often not completely understood and are therefore subject to current research. These investigations are done using different numerical and experimental methods. In this work, we present and evaluate our method of combining a numerical Discrete Element Method (DEM)-Lattice Boltzmann Method (LBM) approach with experimental long-exposure fluorescence microscopy, micro-Particle Image Velocimetry (µPIV) and Astigmatism Particle Tracking Velocimetry (APTV) measurements. The suitability of the single approaches and their synergies are evaluated using the exemplary investigation of multidimensional fractionation in different channel geometries. It shows that both, numerical and experimental method are well suited to evaluate particle dynamics in microchannels. As they furthermore show strengths canceling out weaknesses of the respective other method, the combined method is very well suited for the comprehensive analysis of particle dynamics in microchannels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Plume-surface interactions (PSI) occur during the take-off and landing of interplanetary vehicles, leading to particle ejection and the formation of craters. This can be detrimental to the vehicle and any structures or infrastructure near the landing site. A major challenge in developing a comprehensive understanding of this three-dimensional phenomenon is the need to characterize the ejecta and cratering dynamics simultaneously. Here, experiments are conducted in a vacuum chamber at different nozzle heights and ambient pressure conditions using high-speed stereo-photogrammetry and planar particle tracking velocimetry to quantify the cratering and ejecta dynamics. Predictably, it was observed that the trajectory of ejecta with a large Stokes number was mostly unaffected by the nozzle flow after leaving the crater. Under rarefied conditions, the ejecta kinematics (velocity, ejection angle, range, and height) were significantly different compared to continuum conditions. Finally, the findings demonstrate a dependency between ejecta kinematics and crater topology for the current test cases, providing critical insights into particle ejection's initial characteristics. • Simultaneous cratering and ejecta measurements during plume-surface interaction. • Ambient pressure and nozzle height significantly affected crater and ejecta behavior. • Changes in the ejecta kinematics correlated with the changes in the crater shape. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents the analysis of particle-laden liquid metal flow around a cylindrical obstacle at different obstacle Reynolds numbers. Particles in liquid metal are imaged using dynamic neutron radiography. We present the results of particle tracking velocimetry of the obstacle wake flow and demonstrate the capabilities to assess both temporal and spatial characteristics of turbulent liquid metal flow, validating our methods against theoretical expectations, numerical simulations and experiments reported in the literature. We obtain the expected linear vortex shedding frequency scaling with the obstacle Reynolds number and correctly identify the universal algebraic growth laws predicted and observed for trajectory curvature in isotropic homogeneous two-dimensional turbulence. To our knowledge, this is the first such result for liquid metals. Particle residence times within the obstacle wake and velocity statistics are also derived and found to be physically sound. Finally, we outline potential improvements to our methodology and plan for further research using neutron imaging of particle-laden flow. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Micro-scale positioning techniques have become essential in numerous engineering systems. In the field of fluid mechanics, particle tracking velocimetry (PTV) stands out as a key method for tracking individual particles and reconstructing flow fields. Here, we present an overview of the micro-scale particle tracking methodologies that are predominantly employed for particle detection and flow field reconstruction. It covers various methods, including conventional and data-driven techniques. The advanced techniques, which combine developments in microscopy, photography, image processing, computer vision, and artificial intelligence, are making significant strides and will greatly benefit a wide range of scientific and engineering fields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study presents results from an experimental campaign to explore how different riparian zone characteristics may facilitate the transport or capturing of plastics floating through the fluvial system. Specifically, following field observations for the transport of plastics through fluvial vectors, a substantial number of flume experiments has been designed to assess the effect of floating macro-plastics and riparian zone characteristics. The results from flume experiments were analyzed using particle tracking velocimetry techniques to derive transport metrics (such as transport velocities) of macro-plastics of different sizes and shapes, released at five locations across a wide channel with distinct distance from the vegetated riverbank. The findings are discussed while considering the trapping mechanisms along the vegetated riverbank, which include a range of vegetation densities and arrangements, aiming to identify and quantify the degree of impact of each of the control parameters on the transport of floating plastics. The flow velocimetry records obtained at locations near and within the riverbank correlate well with the transport velocities of the floating plastics. Macro-plastic litter carried downstream away from the riverbank can have up to nine times the transport velocity, compared to those found within the riverbank. The change from a low to a high average density can result in about three times decrease in the transport velocity of floating macro-plastic litter within the riparian zone. These outcomes can help inform better practices for the management of riparian vegetation to maximize the trapping efficiency of macro-plastics, adapted to different flow conditions and river morphologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper extends the work in Tee et al. (Intl J. Multiphase Flow , vol. 133, 2020, 103462) to investigate the effect of turbulent fluid motions on the translation and rotation of lifting and wall-interacting spheres in boundary layers. Each sphere was released from rest in smooth-wall boundary layers with $Re_\tau =670$ and 1300 ($d^+=56$ and 116, respectively) and allowed to propagate with the incoming fluid. Sphere and surrounding fluid motions were tracked simultaneously via three-dimensional particle tracking velocimetry and stereoscopic particle image velocimetry in streamwise–spanwise planes. Two-point correlations of sphere and fluid streamwise velocities yielded long positive regions associated with long fast- and slow-moving zones that approach and move over the spheres. The related spanwise correlations were shorter due to the shorter coherence length of spanwise fluid structures. In general, spheres lag the surrounding fluid. The less-dense lifting sphere had smaller particle Reynolds numbers varying from near zero up to 300. Its lift-offs coincided with oncoming fast-moving zones and fluid upwash. Wall friction initially retarded the acceleration of the denser sphere. Later, fluid torque associated with approaching high-velocity regions initiated forward rotation. The rotation, which was long-lived, induced sufficient Magnus lift to initiate repeated small lift-offs, reduce wall friction, and accelerate the sphere to higher sustained velocity. Particle Reynolds numbers remained above 200, and vortex shedding was omnipresent such that the spheres clearly altered the fluid motion. Spanwise fluid shear occasionally initiated wall-normal sphere rotation and relatively long-lasting Magnus side lift. Hence the finite sphere size contributed to multiple dynamical effects not present in point-particle models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on Voronoi analysis, the properties related to the near-wall motion of particles in a turbulent boundary layer were experimentally investigated via different release modes, with a friction Reynolds number $Re_\tau =3530$. For high-inertia sand particles with Stokes number $St^+ \sim O(10^2\unicode{x2013}10^3)$ and a volume fraction $\varPhi _v \sim O(10^{-4})$ , particle image tracking velocimetry was used to determine the particle position and near-wall distribution properties. We established three particle release modes, including top-released, bottom overall-released and bottom partially released sand particles, under the same flow field conditions and calculated the differences in particle near-wall clustering and void properties. It was confirmed that wall effects (including collision and strike-splash) have a great influence on particle clustering and void behaviour near the wall. In the top-released sand particle and locally laid sand particle cases, particles bounced off the smooth walls and re-entered the carrier flow, causing significant clustering and sparsing of particles near the walls. In contrast, in the overall sand-laying case where the bottom wall was completely covered with sand particles, there is no apparent cluster or void phenomenon near the wall $(z/\delta and the particles are randomly distributed, due to the combined effect of particle impact and splashing. In addition, the clustering and voids of particles become more pronounced with increasing wall-normal distance in the three release modes, and the particle distribution shows some self-similarity at each flow layer. The probability density function of the concentration of cluster particles decreases following a ' $-5/3$ ' power law. However, due to the particle–wall interaction, the probability density function gradually deviates from the ' $-5/3$ ' power law. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Additive manufacturing (AM) offers many potential advantages to constructing gas turbine components such as allowing for more complex geometry in carefully optimized designs. AM processes, such as direct laser sintering, create roughness with distinct characteristics including periodicity from layers of fused material and varying roughness element size depending on surface print orientation. Understanding how this affects airflow through micro cooling channels is essential for component design. Individual roughness elements may block up to 15% of a cooling channel. The fluid responses to this level of roughness are difficult to characterize using traditional models. Three test surfaces were constructed using CT scans of a micro cooling channel printed in Inconel 718 and Hastelloy-X to act as the floor of the roughness internal flow tunnel (RIFT) wind tunnel. These surfaces included an Upskin and Downskin surface to contrast roughness variation caused by print orientation. A tomographic particle tracking system was constructed to examine a 40 × 40 × 6 mm section of the RIFT with the goal of providing a more detailed analysis of flow behavior over roughness elements than previous studies. This system uses a micro bubble generator to provide seed particles, a 15 Hz Evergreen laser, and four 8 MP cameras mounted horizontally to view the test volume. Detailed particle tracking velocimetry measurements of flow around individual roughness elements including velocities, Reynolds stress and dispersive stress above the rough surface are discussed within the limitations of the particle tracking system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The algorithm of three-dimensional (3D) particle cloud reconstruction is a building block for 3D particle tracking velocimetry (3D-PTV). In the present study, a new 3D particle cloud reconstruction algorithm, i.e., neural-network-enhanced line of sight (NN-LOS), is proposed to update the traditional method based on Line of Sight (LOS) algorithm. The essence of NN-LOS is to use a matching neural network (Matching-NN) to evaluate whether or not one set of candidate matching being recorded by different cameras with various viewing perspectives is valid. Such a Matching-NN is in situ trained from virtual datasets that are synthetically generated by taking into account both the spatial calibration information and the actual seeding density in one particular experiment setup. This makes NN-LOS be self-adaptive to the measurement configuration, and thus avoids the problem of properly selecting a filtering threshold for the reprojection error in LOS. Both a series of synthetic tests and one surface morphology measurement are taken to prove that comparing to LOS, NN-LOS provides a significant improvement of the matching accuracy at high seeding density. A 3D-PTV measurement of a vortex ring in a synthetic jet is experimentally performed to demonstrate the advantage of NN-LOS. Comparing to tomographic particle image velocimetry, NNLOS-PTV enhances the spatial resolution of the velocity-field measurement and reduces the uncertainty of instantaneous velocity. The performance improvement is further empirically explained by a semiempirical test. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reports on measurements of the electrostatic charge of particles in a turbulent duct flow. In contrast to previous charge measurements, which do not apply to turbulent flows or give only the sum of all particles' charges, the new method resolves the charge of a turbulent powder flow spatially. The experiment consists of a particle tracking velocimetry (PTV) system and electrode plates that generate an electric field. By comparing particle velocities and accelerations with and without the electric field, the time-averaged local particle charge profile is derived. Spatially resolving the charge profiles unveiled bipolar particle flow. The average of the charge profiles agreed well with a conventional Faraday pail measurement, demonstrating the accuracy of our measurements. However, the peak value of the charge profiles was 76 times higher than the average of the particles' charge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work describes the development of a particle tracking velocimetry (PTV) algorithm designed to improve three-dimensional (3D), three-component velocity field measurements using a single plenoptic camera. Particular focus is on mitigating the longstanding depth uncertainty issues that have traditionally plagued plenoptic particle image velocimetry (PIV) experiments by leveraging the camera's ability to generate multiple perspective views of a scene in order to assist both particle triangulation and tracking. 3D positions are first estimated via light field ray bundling (LFRB) whereby particle rays are projected into the measurement volume using image-to-object space mapping. Tracking is subsequently performed independently within each perspective view, providing a statistical amalgamation of each particle's predicted motion through time in order to help guide 3D trajectory estimation while simultaneously protecting the tracking algorithm from physically unreasonable fluctuations in particle depth positions. A synthetic performance assessment revealed a reduction in the average depth errors obtained by LFRB as compared to the conventional multiplicative algebraic reconstruction technique when estimating particle locations. Further analysis using a synthetic vortex ring at a magnification of − 0.6 demonstrated plenoptic-PIV capable of maintaining the equivalent of 0.1–0.15 voxel accuracy in the depth domain at a spacing to displacement ratio of 5.3–10.5, an improvement of 84–89% compared to plenoptic-PIV. Experiments were conducted at a spacing to displacement ratio of approximately 5.8 to capture the 3D flow field around a rotor within the rotating reference frame. The resulting plenoptic-PIV/PTV vector fields were evaluated with reference to a fixed frame stereoscopic-PIV (stereo-PIV) validation experiment. A systematic depth-wise (radial) component of velocity directed toward the wingtip, consistent with observations from prior literature and stereo-PIV experiments, was captured by plenoptic-PTV at magnitudes similar to the validation data. In contrast, the plenoptic-PIV did not discern any coherent indication of radial motion. Our algorithm constitutes a significant advancement in enhancing the functionality and versatility of single-plenoptic camera flow diagnostics by directly addressing the primary limitation associated with plenoptic imaging. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The settling of porous particles is relevant to many fields of research, which is essential for many natural phenomena and industrial processes. However, due to the complex particle–particle and particle–fluid interactions, the mechanism of porous particles settling has not been fully understood yet. In this study, the settling behaviors and interactions of dual porous particles released side by side are experimentally investigated. The Reynolds number varied from 12 to 258, which is within the transition zone. Particle Tracking Velocimetry and Particle Image Velocimetry were utilized to capture the particles' trajectories and velocities and provide insight into the flow fields around the particles, respectively. The influences of particle porosity ɛ, initial spacing between particles l0*, and Reynolds number Re on the settling process are systematically studied. In this study, ɛ varies from 0 to 0.858 and l0* varies from 0 to 5. The experimental results reveal that there was repulsion between porous particles during settling, which was negatively correlated with l0* and ɛ. When ɛ > 0.3 and l0* < 0.5, the magnitude of the repulsion between porous particles is significantly different from that of the solid particles, and thus, the effect of porosity is important. For other cases, the interaction between porous particles is essentially the same as that between solid particles. The repulsion between the two particles is a result of flow fields asymmetry, and this repulsion vanishes when l0* > 5. The settling process can be divided into three stages depending on the repulsion. Compared to solid particles, the interactions between porous particles are weaker. The reason is that the pore reduces the duration of particle interactions in the repulsion phase, which contributes to the particles to rapid approaching to reach the stable phase. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The settling of solid particles in fluid constitutes a fundamental and crucial aspect with applications spanning various natural phenomena and engineering processes, including sediment transport and wastewater treatments. This paper delves into an experimental investigation aimed at comprehending the settling dynamics and self-organization of multiple spherical particles settling side by side at intermediate Reynolds numbers. The study employs an electromagnetic release device, previously developed for controlled settling of particles under gravity, ensuring simultaneous release with zero initial rotation and velocity. This research captures settling trajectories and provides insight into the flow fields surrounding particles by utilizing particle tracking and particle image velocimetry. The experiments systematically investigate the influence of the settling patterns, the flow fields, the velocities of particles, and their dependence on Reynolds number Re (Re = 52–258), the number of particles n (n = 3–8), as well as the initial spacing between particles l0* (l0* = 0–2). The results consistently reveal a left–right symmetry about the centerline in settling patterns, flow fields, and particle rotations across all values of n, l0*, and Re. The final settling pattern exhibits distinct shapes dependent on l0*: a "V" or "M" shape for l0* < 0.2, a "concave-downward" shape for 0.2 < l0* < 2, and a "straight-line" shape for l0* ≥ 2. The lateral spread of particles increases with time, particularly pronounced with smaller l0* and larger Re, attributed to strong repulsive forces between neighboring particles. Correspondingly, the maximum of horizontal velocities reduces from outside to inside and increases with decreasing l0* and increasing Re. The inner vortices are smaller than the outer vortices, which causes the lateral spread. The vertical spread increases with n but remains insensitive to Re. The average terminal settling velocities for all particles in the array are consistently smaller than those for single particles, as a portion of kinetic energy contributes to horizontal motions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Volumetric three-component flow measurements were made to investigate localized blowing (injection) as a control strategy for turbulent boundary layers over k-type two-dimensional (2D) roughness. The flow measurements were made using particle tracking velocimetry at a Reynolds number of 100,000, based on the freestream velocity and boundary layer thickness. The roughness occupied ~ 13% of the boundary layer thickness and consisted of transverse square bars positioned periodically at a pitch-to-height ratio of 11. Two cases were considered: a baseline case without blowing and a case with blowing through five spanwise jets issuing from the downstream face of the 11th bar. The results highlight the effectiveness of blowing in reducing the size of the recirculation zone and turbulence past the bar. Specifically, the spanwise-averaged flow field for the blowing case shows a 40% reduction in the reattachment length and ~ 25% reduction in the maximum Reynolds shear stress relative to the baseline case. Moreover, visualizations of the vortical structures past the bars for the baseline case display coherent spanwise vortices similar to those observed past isolated 2D bars and backward-facing steps; however, the spanwise vortices observed here exhibit more three-dimensionality likely due to the turbulence enhanced by upstream bars. Blowing disrupts these spanwise vortices and produces new vortical structures with a wall-normal sense of rotation, although significantly weaker than the spanwise vortices. As such, blowing results in a reduction in the spanwise-averaged spanwise vorticity characteristic of the flow over k-type 2D roughness. The disruption of the spanwise vortices and the reduction in the size of the recirculation zone are likely responsible for the reduction in the Reynolds shear stress and turbulent kinetic energy in the near wake. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bacteriophage therapy presents a promising avenue for combating antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections. Yet, challenges exist, particularly, the lack of a straightforward purification pipeline suitable for widespread application to many phage types, as some phages are known to undergo significant titer loss when purified via current techniques. Electrokinetic methods offer a potential solution to this hurdle, with nonlinear electrophoresis emerging as a particularly appealing approach due to its ability to discern both the size and shape of the target phage particles. Presented herein is the electrokinetic characterization of the mobility of nonlinear electrophoresis for two phages (SPN3US and ϕKZ) and three types of polystyrene nanoparticles. The latter served as controls and were selected based on their sizes and surface charge magnitude. Particle tracking velocimetry experiments were conducted to characterize the mobility of all five particles included in this study. The results indicated that the selected nanoparticles effectively replicate the migration behavior of the two phages under electric fields. Further, it was found that there is a significant difference in the nonlinear electrophoretic response of phages and that of host cells, as first characterized in a previous report, illustrating that electrokinetic-based separations are feasible. The findings from this work are the first characterization of the behavior of phages under nonlinear electrophoresis effects and illustrate the potential for the development of electrokinetic-based phage purification techniques that could aid the advancement of bacteriophage therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Particle-wall interaction generates strong particle near-wall motion, including collision bounce and impact splashing. To distinguish the effect of particles and particle near-wall motions on the turbulent coherent structure, this study carried out three different cases of sand-laden two-phase flow measurements: a uniform sand release at the top, local-laying sand bed and global-laying sand bed (Liu et al., J. Fluid Mech., vol. 943, 2022, A8). Based on large field of view particle image velocimetry/particle tracking velocimetry measurements, we obtained the velocity field of a two-dimensional gas-solid two-phase dilute faction flow (Fv ~ O(10-4)) with a friction Reynolds number Ret of 3950. Results indicate that particles weaken the high- and low-velocity iso-momentum zones and hairpin vortices, resulting in the increased length scale of the coherent structure. However, the collision bounce and impact splashing break up the inner iso-momentum zone and hairpin vortices while enhancing them in the outer region, thus reducing the structure scale. In addition, the upward-moving particles increase the large-scale structure inclination angle, while the downward-moving particles decrease it. The linear coherence spectrum analysis suggests that the particles themselves do not change the structural self-similarity, but their saltation motions disrupt the similarity of the near-wall structure, making the inclination angle decrease with the scale, and the generated ascending particles reduce the aspect ratio of the streamwise to wall-normal direction in the outer region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Flow generation by colloidal motors activated by external stimuli is an important issue for active matter physics and several nanotechnological or biomedical applications. For instance, flow recirculation generated by rotating magnetic self-assemblies allows effective 'pumping' of a thrombolytic drug towards a blood clot along a blocked vessel. However, the physics of the flow generation in this case remains still poorly explored. This study is focused on the generation of a recirculation flow of a magnetic colloid (aqueous suspension of iron oxide nanoparticles with partially screened electrostatic repulsion) within a closed microfluidic channel via application of an external rotating magnetic field. The colloid undergoes reversible phase separation manifested through the appearance of micron-sized elongated aggregates. They synchronously rotate with the magnetic field and can generate macroscopic flows only in the presence of gradients of the aggregate concentration across the channel induced by superposition of a weak magnetic field gradient to the homogeneous rotating field. We achieve recirculation flows with a characteristic speed ~5-8 µm s-1 at low magnetic field amplitude and frequency (H0 = 3-10 kA m-1, f = 5-15 Hz) at low nanoparticle volume fraction p = (1.6-3.2) × 10-3. The concentration and velocity profiles have been assessed experimentally through particle tracking and particle image velocimetry, and have also been computed using the hydrodynamic diffusion approach coupled with the momentum balance equation with a magnetic torque term. The model correctly reproduces the shape of the experimental concentration and velocity fields and explains complex behaviours of the average recirculation speed as a function of governing parameters (H0, f, p, channel size). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simultaneous time-resolved measurements of wall deformation and the 3-D velocity field in boundary layers over a compliant surface are performed by integrating Mach Zehnder interferometry with tomographic particle tracking velocimetry. The pressure is calculated by spatially integrating the material acceleration. Combining data obtained from several references, trends of the deformation r.m.s. scaled by the compliant wall thickness collapse when plotted vs pressure fluctuations scaled by the material shear modulus. For the present data, at all Reynolds numbers, the deformation waves travel at 53 % of the free-stream velocity and have a preferred wavelength of three times the thickness. The latter is consistent with theoretical models. Adopting insight derived from atmospheric wind-wave interactions, the pressure-deformation correlations peak at or slightly above the 'critical layer', where the mean flow speed is equal to the surface wave speed. This layer is located within the log layer, and when expressed using inner variables, increases in elevation with increasing Reynolds number. For the entire region below the critical layer, wavenumber-frequency spectra of pressure and vertical velocity fluctuations indicate that the turbulence is phase locked and travels with the deformation, even for deformation amplitudes much smaller than a wall unit. In contrast, above the critical layer, the turbulence is advected at the local mean streamwise velocity, and its correlation with the deformation decays rapidly. These findings indicate that the height of the zone dominated by flow-deformation interactions is determined by the surface wave speed, and its variations are caused by deformation-induced modifications to the mean velocity profile. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Flow-induced vibration (FIV) of a flexible cylinder with a triangular cross-section, allowed to oscillate in the cross-flow, inline and torsional direction, is studied experimentally through water tunnel tests. The dynamic response of the cylinder was studied for three different angles of attack (0◦, 30◦, 60◦), at reduced velocities of 0.9–16.27, corresponding to Reynolds numbers of 364–3600. At the angle of attack of 0◦, vortex-induced vibration at low reduced velocity was observed, which transitioned to galloping at higher reduced velocities. At the angles of attack of 30◦ and 60◦, galloping-type response was observed over the range of the reduced velocities tested. Our results show that the cylinder’s torsional oscillation breaks the system’s symmetry and affects the structural response at higher reduced velocities regardless of the angle of attack. The FIV response of the flexible triangular cylinder is distinct from that of a rigid flexibly mounted triangular cylinder due to torsional oscillation, spanwise flexibility and the two fixed boundary conditions limiting the amplitude of oscillation. Flow field analysis in the wake of the cylinder was done qualitatively and quantitatively using hydrogen bubble flow visualisation and time-resolved volumetric particle tracking velocimetry techniques, respectively. Our results show the existence of highly three-dimensional vortex structures in the wake of the cylinder. We studied the coupling between the vortex shedding modes in the wake of the cylinder and the structural vibration modes through the spatiotemporal mode analysis using the proper orthogonal decomposition technique to distinguish between different types of the FIV response observed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The hemodynamics in the aorta as well as the durability of aortic valve prostheses vary greatly between different types of devices. Although placement and sizing of surgical aortic valve prostheses are excellent, the valve geometry of common devices cannot be customized to fit the patient's anatomy perfectly. Similarly, transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) devices are not customizable and may be orientated unfavorably during implantation. Imperfect fit of an aortic valve prosthesis may result in suboptimal performance and in some cases the need for additional surgery. Leveraging the advent of precision, multi-material 3D-printing, a bioinspired silicone aortic valve was developed. The manufacturing technique makes it fully customizable and significantly cheaper to develop and produce than common prostheses. In this study, we assess the hemodynamic performance of such a 3D-printed aortic valve and compare it to two TAVI devices as well as to a severely stenosed valve. We investigate the blood flow distal to the valve in an anatomically accurate, compliant aorta model via three-dimensional particle tracking velocimetry measurements. Our results demonstrate that the 3D-printed aortic valve induces flow patterns and topology compatible with the TAVI valves and showing similarity to healthy aortic blood flow. Compared to the stenosis, the 3D-printed aortic valve reduces turbulent kinetic energy levels and irreversible energy losses by over 75%, reaching values compatible with healthy subjects and conventional TAVIs. Our study substantiates that the 3D-printed heart valve displays a hemodynamic performance similar to established devices and underscores its potential for driving innovation towards patient specific valve prostheses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ability to measure the charge and size of single particles is essential to understanding particle adhesion and interaction with their environment. Characterizing the physical properties of biological particles, like cells, can be a powerful tool in studying the association between the changes in physical properties and disease development. Currently, measuring charge via the electrophoretic mobility (μep) of individual particles remains challenging, and there is only one prior report of simultaneously measuring μep and size. We introduce microfluidic transverse AC electrophoresis (TrACE), a novel technique that combines particle tracking velocimetry (PTV) and AC electrophoresis. In TrACE, electric waves with 0.75 to 1.5 V amplitude are applied transversely to the bulk flow and cause the particles to oscillate. PTV records the particles' oscillating trajectories as pressure drives bulk flow through the microchannel. A simple quasi-equilibrium model agrees well with experimental measurements of frequency, amplitude, and phase, indicating that particle motion is largely described by DC electrophoresis. The measured μep of polystyrene particles (0.53, 0.84, 1, and 2 μm diameter) are consistent with ELS measurements, and precision is enhanced by averaging ∼100 measurements per particle. Particle size is simultaneously measured from Brownian motion quantified from the trajectory for particles <2 μm or image analysis for particles ≥2 μm. Lastly, the ability to analyze intact mammalian cells is demonstrated with B cells. TrACE systems are expected to be highly suitable as fieldable tools to measure the μep and size of a broad range of individual particles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Time-resolved tomographic particle tracking velocimetry (TR-3D-PTV), also called 4D-PTV, is used here to obtain the instantaneous 3D liquid flow field information in the wake of a single rising bubble in water. Simultaneously, the bubble shape, size and velocity are determined by tomographic reconstruction of the 3D bubble shape. Both, tracer particles for PTV and bubbles, are imaged in a shadow mode with background illumination. The Lagrangian method used in this paper, especially combined with the shake the box algorithm, has big advantages compared to particle image velocimetry, in situations, where only low particle per pixel values can be obtained. In this research, single air bubbles of different sizes, with diameters of around 2.4 mm, 4.0 mm, 6.0 mm and 9.6 mm, were injected into stagnant de-ionized water. Their shape was reconstructed in 3D, and an equivalent bubble diameter was determined from this reconstruction. Compared to conventionally used 2D shadow imaging, this diameter is about 13% smaller. The 3D bubble trajectory can be analysed and decomposed into a sinusoidal function curve lateral projection and an ellipsoidal shape vertical projection. As the bubble diameter increases, the radius of the spiral trajectory is decreasing as well as the amplitude of vertical sinusoidal oscillation. The wake structure in the liquid behind the bubbles is also changing with bubble size: from simple vortex pairs for smaller bubbles to an intertwined structure of several twisted vortices for the bigger ones. Three-dimensional bubble reconstruction (grey surface) and liquid stream lines coloured with velocity magnitude around an ascending air bubble in de-ionized water. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Flow field measurements around cross-country skiers (xc skiers) are lacking in the literature to date. The aim was therefore to investigate the possibility of using particle tracking velocimetry for visualization and measurement of the flow field around xc skiers roller skiing on a treadmill in a wind tunnel. The airflow was seeded with neutrally buoyant helium-filled soap bubbles as tracer particles, following the flow without affecting it. As illumination, two different approaches were tested: first, a laser in the cameras’ line of sight (sagittal plane), then an LED unit directed vertically in a narrow slice, clearly limiting the depth of the measurement volume in the cameras’ line of sight. The flow field was studied at various speeds (3-7 m/s) around a single skier as well as around two skiers in line with the streaming airflow. It was found that the experimental approach has the potential to provide detailed insights, both qualitatively and quantitatively, into the flow field dynamics. The main challenges regarding setup, illumination, seeding, and cameras were identified, and possible improvements to streamline the experimental methodology were discussed.

We evaluate Beer-Lambert (BL) ray-tracing and Monte Carlo N-Particle (MCNP) photon tracking simulations for prediction and comparison of x-ray imaging system performance. These simulation tools can aid the methodical design of laboratory-scale x-ray particle image velocimetry (XPIV) experiments and tracer particles by predicting image quality. Particle image signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) is used as the metric of system performance. Simulated and experiment data of hollow, silver-coated, glass sphere tracer particles (AGSF-33) are compared. As predicted by the simulations, the AGSF-33 particles are visible with a SNR greater than unity in 100 ms exposure time images, demonstrating their potential as x-ray PIV or particle tracking velocimetry (XPTV) tracers. The BL approach predicts the image contrast, is computationally inexpensive, and enables the exploration of a vast parameter space for system design. MCNP simulations, on the other hand, predict experiment images slightly more accurately, but are more than an order of magnitude more computationally expensive than BL simulations. For most practical XPIV system design applications, the higher computational expense of MCNP is likely not justified by the modest accuracy improvement compared to BL.

Stereophotogrammetry was adopted as a means to measure three-dimensional displacements of a soil specimen surface in triaxial tests. New developments include an efficient algorithm that resolves the relative displacements with high precision to the order of 10−3 mm, and strains in common-sized soil specimens to the order of 10−3%, while correcting for ray refraction effects caused by the pressure cell wall and water. The system, requiring only sets of compact-type digital cameras as hardware, allows a stiffness–strain curve to be determined over wide strain ranges spanning from 10−3% to virtually any large strain with a fixed configuration. This paper explains the proposed image analysis processes, which combine a ray tracing formulation by Zhang and co-workers, particle tracking velocimetry and sub-pixel digital image correlation in efficiently deriving accurate and precise relative displacements. Rigorous assessment of the accuracy and precision was conducted. As a demonstration, two undrained triaxial compression tests on reconstituted clay were performed with and without end lubrication. Both for small-strain (<0·05%) axial loading–unloading cycles and for monotonic loading to large axial strain (15%), the strain development was tracked and the specimen behaviour was characterised. These tests demonstrate that the new technique can be a useful option in a soil laboratory both for research and practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The commercialization of mass hydrogen production via water electrolysis is presently limited by low operational current densities. The optimal performance of electrolysis cells is significantly influenced by the substantial formation and residence of bubbles at high current densities. Thus, it is crucial to design electrodes with the ability for rapid bubble discharge to ensure appropriate bubble management. However, the quantitative volumetric measurements required to determine the bubble discharge ability of an electrode are not yet sufficiently accurate. This paper describes a quantitative volumetric method that combines a stereoscopic shadowgraph imaging system with particle tracking velocimetry (PTV) to measure the three-dimensional position, size, and velocity of micrometer-sized bubbles. The proposed method successfully captures hydrogen bubbles larger than 30 μm bubbles in an alkaline water electrolyzer. Considering the different luminance patterns of small bubbles (r ≤ 4 pixels) and large bubbles (r > 4 pixels) in the current imaging system, a bubble-size adaptive detection algorithm is established based on the cascade correlation method to obtain the two-dimensional centroid coordinates and radius of the observed bubbles. The bubble size information is also introduced into a two-view PTV algorithm for retrieving the Lagrangian trajectory of each bubble. Both the bubble detection and PTV algorithms are validated using synthetic datasets. Once the bubble trajectories are resolved successfully, the three-dimensional bubble velocity is obtained, and the actual bubble sizes are further corrected using the depth information. Analysis of the trajectory and velocity components indicates the existence of lateral bubble motion, reflecting interactions among bubbles. The rise velocity is positively correlated with the bubble radius in two regions, respectively, and the deviation from the theoretical value reveals the influence of non-buoyancy factors. The proposed technique provides effective diagnostics of the three-dimensional dynamic characteristics of micrometer-sized bubbles and can be used to evaluate and design bubble management systems for various electrochemical energy conversion devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents time-resolved, three-dimensional measurements coupling particle trajectories with flow fields around settling spheres in Newtonian fluids. The experiments cover a range of particle Reynolds numbers (Re), spanning from 1.6 to 6. Our calculated drag coefficients, derived from sphere trajectories, closely align with values reported in the literature. Notably, our high spatial resolution reveals oscillations, potentially corresponding to the "streamwise oscillations" phenomenon discussed by Horowitz and Williamson ["The effect of Reynolds number on the dynamics and wakes of freely rising and falling spheres," J. Fluid Mech. 651, 251 (2010)]. For a single sphere, we extract the three-dimensional flow field using particle tracking velocimetry. Discrete particle tracks are meticulously interpolated onto a regular grid using a fine-scale reconstruction based on the vortex-in-cell method. Leveraging the known sphere position, we introduce a sphere-centered coordinate system, enabling time-averaging of flow properties. Additionally, we interpolate and analyze the pressure field on the sphere's surface, employing proper orthogonal decomposition to unveil distinct pressure fluctuation modes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Particle image velocimetry and particle tracking velocimetry have played pivotal roles in flow and particle characterization, owing to their non-invasive and accurate data collection methods. However, their broader application in the biomicrofluidics field is constrained by challenges, such as intensive calibration, high post-processing costs, and optical compatibility issues, especially in settings where space is a bottleneck. This article describes recent advancements in non-iterative ray tracing that promise more streamlined post-capture calibration and highlights examples of applications and areas that merit further technological investigation. The development and adoption of these techniques may pave the way for new innovations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The mass transport rate of wind‐borne particles, and indeed the fluid stress required for their entrainment, is strongly governed by inter‐particle cohesion arising from water retained through adsorption and capillary force. This paper reports on a series of wind tunnel experiments in which high‐speed photography was used to record the motion of dry sand particles as they impinged on test beds of systematically varied target gravimetric pore water content (0% ≤ W ≤ 10%). The wind friction velocity was preset to 0.33 m s−1, sufficient to maintain a saltation cloud above an upwind strip of dry sand, which then was blown over the wetted surface. Discrete particle trajectories were identified in the camera images using expected particle area searching–particle tracking velocimetry (EPAS‐PTV). Adding progressively more water produced an exponential decrease in the normalized particle number density over the test surface. The largest response was achieved by wetting the bed surface to just 2%. To reduce the number of particles by a further 40%, it was necessary to add eight times more water, signifying a diminishing return regarding water use. Relative to particles either rebounding or splashed from a dry bed, the total particle velocity increased incrementally by a factor between 1.5 and 2 with increasing water content. Increasing amounts of pore water were associated with progressively higher saltation trajectories, reaching a plateau beyond W ~8%. The spatio‐temporal adjustment in the sand cloud was observed to be extremely rapid. There is no consensus in the literature on how to measure the water content that effectively governs aeolian transport. In this study, all approaches to sampling W produced strong correlation (R2 ≥ 0.85). Sampling the topmost grains, however, provided the most accurate prediction of the normalized number density over the full range of water content. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]