Lattice-Boltzmann Simulations of Fluid Flows in MEMS

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates the effectiveness of the lattice Boltzmann method in simulating micro-scale fluid flows in MEMS, capturing velocity slip, pressure drops, and vortex behavior with relevance to micro-channel and cavity flows.

Contribution

It applies the lattice Boltzmann method to MEMS fluid flow problems, highlighting its ability to model slip and nonlinear effects at micro scales.

Findings

Lattice Boltzmann captures velocity slip in micro-channel flow.

It models nonlinear pressure drops accurately.

Knudsen number influences vortex position and pressure contours.

Abstract

The lattice Boltzmann model is a simplified kinetic method based on the particle distribution function. We use this method to simulate problems in MEMS, in which the velocity slip near the wall plays an important role. It is demonstrated that the lattice Boltzmann method can capture the fundamental behavior in micro-channel flow, including velocity slip and nonlinear pressure drop along the channel. The Knudsen number dependence of the position of the vortex center and the pressure contour in micro-cavity flows is also demonstrated.