Fluid flows at nanometric scales are ubiquitous in nature, whether in porous media (soil, groundwater, etc.) or in living systems (interstices in cell membranes, within organs such as the kidney, for example). More practically, nano-porous membranes are used for depollution (water filtration), for on-chip laboratories (diagnostics), or for new methods of recovering carbon-free energy (osmotic power plant).
During the first two sessions, we will approach certain notions common to nano-scale flows. In particular, if we fill a cube with a side of one nanometer with water, we are in the presence of about thirty water molecules. Many questions then arise concerning the flows of such a small volume:
- Are the Navier-Stokes equations still valid?
- The number of molecules on the edges of the cube is much greater than the number of molecules in volume.
- What effect does this have on flows?Finally, we will see how this large surface/volume ratio makes it possible to generate large-scale coupled transport phenomena, at the origin of the abovementioned applications.
During six other sessions, we will put these concepts into practice and we will produce and size prototypes for energy recovery (a mini-osmotic power plant), filtration (seawater desalination for example), or diagnostics (a laboratory on chip).
Practical information: Oral assessment, numerus clausus of twelve students, courses in English or French as needed.
- Profesor: Biance Anne-Laure