Design and manufacture of a modular cylindrical apparatus for ferrofluid experimentation

• Main Author: Schoen, Katrina Leigh
• Other Authors: Markus Zahn.
• Format: Others
• Language: English
• Published: Massachusetts Institute of Technology 2012
• Subjects: Mechanical Engineering.
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/68542

Thesis (S.B.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, 2011. === Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. === Includes bibliographical references (p. 44). === Ferrofluids, colloidal suspensions of coated magnetic nanoparticles inside a carrier fluid, respond to externally applied magnetic fields. This thesis addresses the behavior of these fluids when subjected to an azimuthally rotating uniform magnetic field. In order to test the theory that fluid flow in this situation is driven by non-uniform magnetic properties originating from container shape, it is necessary to test ferrofluids in cylindrical vessels of varying aspect ratio. A stacking modular solution was designed and constructed to provide the proper apparatus for these tests. Experiments were conducted to investigate fluid flow patterns, and initial results indicate support for the theory of non-uniform demagnetizing effects as the cause of fluid flow in cylinders of finite height. === by Katrina Leigh Schoen. === S.B.