Numerical Simulation of Fluid Slip at a Hydrophobic Surface

Laminar drag reduction is achieved by using a hydrophobic surface. In this method, fluid slip is applied at the hydrophobic surface. An initial experiment to clarify for a laminar skin friction reduction was conducted using ducts with a highly water-repellent surface. The surface has a fractal-type structure with many fine grooves. Fluid slip at a hydrophobic surface has been analyzed by applying a new wet boundary condition. In this simulation, an internal flow is assumed to be a two-dimensional laminar flow in a rectangular duct and an external flow is assumed to be a two-dimensional laminar flow past a circular cylinder. The VOF technique has been used as the method for tracking gas-liquid interfaces, and the CSF model has been used as the method for modeling surface tension effects. The wet boundary condition for the hydrophobic property on the surface has been determined from the volume ratio in contact with water near the surface. The model with a stable gas-liquid interface and the experimental results of flow past a circular cylinder at Re = 250 without growing the Karman vortex street are made, and these results show that laminar drag reduction occurring due to fluid slip can be explained in this model.