Abstract
The present investigation deals with an undulating surface model for the motility of bacteria gliding on a layer of non-Newtonian slime. The slime being the viscoelastic material is considered as a power-law fluid. A hydrodynamical model of motility involving an undulating cell surface which transmits stresses through a layer of exuded slime to the substratum is examined. The non-linear differential equation resulting from the balance of momentum and mass is solved numerically by a finite difference method with an iteration technique. The manner in which the various exponent values of the power-law flow affect the structure of the boundary layer is delineated. A comparison is made of the power-law fluid with the Newtonian fluid. For the power-law fluid with respect to different power-law exponent values, shear-thinning and shear-thickening effects can be observed, respectively.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 329-347 |
Number of pages | 19 |
Journal | Mathematical Methods in the Applied Sciences |
Volume | 28 |
Issue number | 3 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Feb 2005 |
All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes
- General Mathematics
- General Engineering