Fluid viscoelasticity controls acoustic streaming via shear waves

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Hauptverfasser: Sujith, T., Sen, A. K.
Format: Preprint
Veröffentlicht: 2026
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author Sujith, T.
Sen, A. K.
author_facet Sujith, T.
Sen, A. K.
contents Control of acoustic streaming can significantly impact fluid and particle transport in microfluidics. We report enhancement, suppression, and reversal of acoustic streaming inside a rectangular microchannel by controlling the fluid viscoelastic properties. Our study reveals that the streaming regimes depend on Deborah number ($De$) and viscous diffusion number ($Dv$), expressed in terms of a Streaming Coefficient ($C_s$). We find streaming is enhanced when $C_s>1$, suppressed for $0\leq C_s\leq1$, and reversed when $C_s<0$. We explain the regimes in terms of the interplay between the Reynolds and viscoelastic stresses that collectively drive fluid motion. Remarkably, we discover the role of viscoelastic shear waves in acoustic streaming transition characterized by the ratio of acoustic attenuation length and shear wavelength. We gain deeper insight into the streaming transition by examining energy dynamics in terms of the loss and storage moduli. Our study may find applications in acousto-microfluidics systems for particle handling and fluid pumping/mixing.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2602_17081
institution arXiv
publishDate 2026
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Fluid viscoelasticity controls acoustic streaming via shear waves
Sujith, T.
Sen, A. K.
Fluid Dynamics
Control of acoustic streaming can significantly impact fluid and particle transport in microfluidics. We report enhancement, suppression, and reversal of acoustic streaming inside a rectangular microchannel by controlling the fluid viscoelastic properties. Our study reveals that the streaming regimes depend on Deborah number ($De$) and viscous diffusion number ($Dv$), expressed in terms of a Streaming Coefficient ($C_s$). We find streaming is enhanced when $C_s>1$, suppressed for $0\leq C_s\leq1$, and reversed when $C_s<0$. We explain the regimes in terms of the interplay between the Reynolds and viscoelastic stresses that collectively drive fluid motion. Remarkably, we discover the role of viscoelastic shear waves in acoustic streaming transition characterized by the ratio of acoustic attenuation length and shear wavelength. We gain deeper insight into the streaming transition by examining energy dynamics in terms of the loss and storage moduli. Our study may find applications in acousto-microfluidics systems for particle handling and fluid pumping/mixing.
title Fluid viscoelasticity controls acoustic streaming via shear waves
topic Fluid Dynamics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2602.17081