ABSTRACT Proposal Number: 9612308 Principal Investigator: Renardy This research is concerned with the shape of the interface between two immiscible liquids. Theoretically there are often many possibilities for the shape of the boundary between the two fluids. However, experiments show that certain shapes are often preferred among the several possibilities. The motivation of this research is to lessen the gap between theoretical prediction and experimental observation. A combination of physical modeling, analysis , and computational techniques will be used to achieve the desired results. The focus of this study will be on several important issues including the role of oscillatory forcing as a dynamic stabilization or destabilization mechanism, two layered polymeric flows and two layer convection. This study has applications in the manufacture of bi-component polymeric materials and layered films, and in bi-component liquid flow in pipes and channels such as in the use of water to assist in the more economical transport of petroleum products in pipelines. A major problem in this technology is the unexpected behavior of two fluid systems.
