A numerical model for simulating electroosmotic micro- and nanochannel flows under non-Boltzmann equilibrium

Abstract

This paper describes a numerical model for simulating electroosmotic flows (EOFs) under non-Boltzmann equilibrium in a micro- and nanochannel. The transport of ionic species is represented by employing the Nernst-Planck equation. Modeling issues related to numerical difficulties are discussed, which include the handling of boundary conditions based on surface charge density, the associated treatment of electric potential and the evasion of nonlinearity due to the electric body force. The EOF in the entrance region of a straight channel is examined. The numerical results show that the present model is useful for the prediction of the EOFs requiring a fine resolution of the electric double layer under either the Boltzmann equilibrium or non-equilibrium. Based on the numerical results, the correlation between the surface charge density and the zeta potential is investigated.