DSMC investigation of rarefied gas flow through diverging micro- and nanochannels

TL;DR

This study uses DSMC simulations to analyze rarefied gas flow in diverging micro- and nanochannels, revealing flow behaviors, no separation, and increased mass flow compared to straight channels, with a focus on the Knudsen minimum phenomenon.

Contribution

It introduces a DSMC-based investigation of rarefied gas flow in diverging microchannels, highlighting flow characteristics and flow enhancement due to divergence.

Findings

No flow separation observed across all parameters.

Diverging channels carry more mass than straight channels.

Knudsen minimum phenomenon confirmed in non-uniform channels.

Abstract

Direct simulation Monte Carlo (DSMC) method with simplified Bernoulli-trials (SBT) collision scheme has been used to study the rarefied pressure-driven nitrogen flow through diverging microchannels. The fluid behaviours flowing between two plates with different divergence angles ranging between 0$^{\circ}$ to 17$^{\circ}$ are described at different pressure ratios (1.5${\le}{\prod}{\le}$2.5) and Knudsen numbers (0.03${\le}$Kn${\le}$12.7). The primary flow field properties, including pressure, velocity, and temperature, are presented for divergent microchannels and are compared with those of a microchannel with a uniform cross-section. The variations of the flow field properties in divergent microchannels, which are influenced by the area change, the channel pressure ratio and the rarefication are discussed. The results show no flow separation in divergent microchannels for all the range of simulation parameters studied in the present work. It has been found that a divergent channel can carry higher amounts of mass in comparison with an equivalent straight channel geometry. A correlation between the mass flow rate through microchannels, the divergence angle, the pressure ratio, and the Knudsen number has been suggested. The present numerical findings prove the occurrence of Knudsen minimum phenomenon in micro- and Nano- channels with non-uniform cross-sections.