LOW REYNOLDS-NUMBER MOTION OF A DROPLET IN SHEAR-FLOW INCLUDING WALL EFFECTS

The hydrodynamic interaction between a droplet immersed in Couette flow and the containing walls is studied. The analysis is based on the assumptions that the disturbance flow induced by the droplet is without inertia, that the droplet maintains its nearly spherical shape and that the radius of the droplet is small compared with the distance between the walls. Based on Lorentz's reflection method, a first-order simple analytical solution is derived for the case of a droplet in close vicinity to one wall. An integral solution is given for the general configuration of a droplet interacting with two walls. First-order corrections for wall effects are obtained for the drag force and the droplet's deviation from sphericity. © 1990.