Introduction to fluid mechanics in micro- and nanofabricated devices.

Fluid mechanics: physicochemical description of hydrodynamics, mixing phenomena at low Re, capillarity, double layer phenomena and electrokinetic effects, optical and electrical particle manipulation, nanofluidic applications such as entropic and confinement effects, nonlinear E-field effects. Some topics include Maxwell and Navier-Stokes equations, Couette/Poiseuille flow, Stokes flow, fluid circuits, microfluidic mixing, potential flow, mass and charge transport, solution chemistry, electrodynamics, the electrical double layer, electroosmosis, electrophoresis, dielectrophoresis, induced-charge electrokinetics, chemical separations, DNA transport, and zeta potential.

Click the link for an online version of the microfluidics textbook used for this class.

• Fall 2008
• Fall 2007
• Fall 2006
• Spring 2006
• Spring 2005

Spring 2009 students--Click Here for Blackboard Course Webpage

Emphasis is placed on both the fundamental principles and numerical calculation of real flows using a computational fluid dynamics package. Topics covered include some exact solutions to the Navier-Stokes equations, boundary layers, wakes and jets, separation, compressible flow, and turbulence.

For those interested in students' evaluation of effort and time load for this course, please see question 14 on the course evaluations (available to Cornell community only):

• Spring 2009--MAE4230
• Spring 2009--MAE5230
• Spring 2008
• Spring 2007

Laboratory exercises in fluid mechanics and the thermal sciences.

Measurements of flame temperature, pressure, heat transfer, viscosity, lift and drag, fluid-flow rate, effects of turbulence, air foil stall, flow visualization, and spark-ignition engine performance. Instrumentation, techniques and analysis, and interpretation of results. Biweekly written assignments with extensive feedback.