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The hydraulic conductance of a capillary with a sinusoidally varying cross‐section
Author(s) -
Bernabé Yves,
Olson John F.
Publication year - 2000
Publication title -
geophysical research letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.007
H-Index - 273
eISSN - 1944-8007
pISSN - 0094-8276
DOI - 10.1029/1999gl010842
Subject(s) - mechanics , wavelength , reynolds number , hydraulic conductivity , conductance , capillary action , radius , tube (container) , cross section (physics) , flow (mathematics) , materials science , physics , optics , thermodynamics , geology , turbulence , condensed matter physics , computer science , composite material , computer security , soil science , soil water , quantum mechanics
Using lattice‐gas cellular automata we simulated fluid flow through a straight tube with a sinusoidally varying cross‐section, i.e., what we call a varicose tube. We found that the hydraulic conductance of such a constricted tube was bounded between the long‐wavelength values predicted by Reynolds' equation and the so‐called “stagnant limit” at short wavelengths. In particular, we conclude that pore space associated with roughness at wavelengths shorter than about 15% of the pore radius, should not contribute to hydraulic conductivity and need not be resolved for flow simulation purposes.