Electro/Magnetically Induced Controllable Rotation In Small-scale Liquid Flow

We study all the possibilities of producing rotating flow in an incompressible fluid by electric and magnetic fields. We start with a general theoretical basis and look for different configurations and set-ups which electric/magnetic field and an electric current affect the vorticity of fluid resulting in rotation on liquid flow. We assume steady-state conditions and time-independent electric and magnetic fields as the external body torque. Regarding the theoretical basis, we propose three experimental set-ups in which by applying fields on a fluid, rotational vortices are produced: (a) a uniform electric field and a uniform electric current, (b) a uniform electric current and a non-uniform magnetic field, and (c) a non-uniform electric current and a uniform magnetic field. The first case has been reported in detail named "Liquid Film Motor". The two other cases are experimentally investigated here for a cubic an cylindrical cells. The rotational velocity patterns are obtained by PIV technique, and the results are discussed and justified by a preliminary estimation based on the torque exerted by magnetic fields on electric currents. From the log-log plot of angular velocity versus current, the non-linearity factors of the rotational flow for cylindrical and rectangular geometries are obtained.