Numerical simulations of electrolyte jets in an electric field

When an electrolyte jet is injected through a grounded nozzle into a region with an electric field, we observe non-axisymmetric whipping instabilities in the jet. These instabilities are characterized by large scale violent, chaotic and quick whips of the jet. This system is numerically modeled using an electrohydrodynamic formulation that includes the Nernst-Planck model for ion transport with an aim to investigate the origin and propagation of the instabilities in the jet. Numerical results are being verified with experimental studies performed at the Multiphase & Cardiovascular Flow Laboratory (MCFL) of the University of Washington where such instabilities are observed in a sodium chloride jet. In this talk, we discuss the formulation and modeling of electrolyte jets using a Poisson–Nernst–Planck (PNP) model. Ion advection, electrodiffusion and electromigration have been tested qualitatively and quantitatively. Simulating this process will help gain an in-depth insight into the complex physical phenomena that occur in electrolytic multiphase flows with applications in fields such as biophysics, electrochemistry, nanofluidics and solid-state physics.