A graphics workstation will be purchased by the Department of Chemical Engineering to visualize the suspension microstructures and evolving dynamics. The selected system is Stardent ST3020VS. The dynamics of microstructured fluids are simulated using Stokesian dynamics simulation. The microstructured fluids are in the form of particles dispersed in a fluid medium where the particles interact through any combination of Brownian, colloidal, external and hydrodynamics forces. Microstructural (particle distribution functions, etc.) anbd macroscopic (rheology, diffusivities, etc.) properties are determined under highly nonequilibrium conditions typical of those found in the processing of multiphase materials. The goal of the work is to understand the relationship between structure and properties on the one hand and between structure and flow on the other.
