Microfluidic-assisted particle manipulation in complex fluid environments for biomedical and engineering applications

We are delighted to offer two new PhD positions (one experimental and one numerical) on “particle manipulation in complex fluid environments for biomedical and engineering applications” at Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering - University of Strathclyde. This is part of a wider programme in collaboration with KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm, Sweden. Therefore, the students will join a vibrant international collaborative research environment.

Particle focusing and manipulation have applications in numerous fields, from pharmaceutical sciences to biomedical and material engineering. It has been shown that the non-linearity in the background fluid flow, either coming from the fluid inertia or from the non-Newtonian rheology of the carrier fluid, can be used for this purpose. The latter is more efficient when a more controlled process is required since it can be performed even in the low inertia regime. For example, the viscoelasticity of the fluid has been used to induce particle sorting and our preliminary studies with yield stress fluids have suggested that viscoplastic behaviour could provide yet another alternative for particle sorting. The synergy between elasticity and plasticity of the suspending fluid (elastoviscoplasticity) is demonstrated to trigger particle-focusing in the core unyielded region inside the flow field which can keep the particles quiescent relative to the background flow while being purely transported (i.e. without any relative motion/rotation due to semi-solid behaviour of the core unyielded region), but detailed/in-depth studies with elastoviscoplastic fluids are still lacking to make the usage of these concepts efficiently in practice.

Candidates will require a good Hons Degree in Mechanical (or related) Engineering, Physics or Applied Maths, with, ideally, experience in computational methods (for the numerical PhD) or in microfluidics or rheology (for the experimental PhD). Most importantly, they should have a solid background and an enthusiastic readiness to think creatively and to turn ideas into insightful science and engineering.

The students will be part of the James Weir Fluid Laboratory, a hub for cutting-edge research in various fields of fluid mechanics and rheology. PhD candidates will be enrolled in the Postgraduate Certificate in Researcher Professional Development (PGCert), allowing them to gain a wide range of multidisciplinary skills and experience and offering invaluable opportunities for advancing their prospective careers.