What tiny surfing robots teach us about surface tension

Date:
October 9, 2020
Source:
Michigan Technological University
Summary:
Propelled by chemical changes in surface tension, microrobots
surfing across fluid interfaces lead researchers to new ideas.



FULL STORY ========================================================================== Spend an afternoon by a creek in the woods, and you're likely to notice
water striders -- long-legged insects that dimple the surface of the
water as they skate across. Or, dip one side of a toothpick in dish
detergent before placing it in a bowl of water, and impress your grade
schooler as the toothpick gently starts to move itself across the surface.


==========================================================================
Both situations illustrate the concepts of surface tension and propulsion velocity. At Michigan Technological University, mechanical engineer
Hassan Masoud and PhD student Saeed Jafari Kang have applied the lessons
of the water strider and the soapy toothpick to develop an understanding
of chemical manipulation of surface tension.

Their vehicle? Tiny surfing robots.

"During the past few decades, there have been many efforts to
fabricate miniature robots, especially swimming robots," said Masoud, an assistant professor in the mechanical engineering-engineering mechanics department. "Much less work has been done on tiny robots capable of
surfing at the interface of water and air, what we call liquid interfaces, where very few robots are capable of propelling themselves." Beyond the obvious implications for future Lucasfilm droids designed for ocean
planets (C-H2O), what are the practical applications of surfing robots? "Understanding these mechanisms could help us understand colonization
of bacteria in a body," Masoud said. "The surfing robots could be used
in biomedical applications for surgery. We are unraveling the potential
of these systems." Hunting for Answers and the Marangoni Effect


========================================================================== During his doctoral studies and postdoc appointment, Masoud conducted
research to understand the hydrodynamics of synthetic microrobots and the mechanisms by which they move through fluid. While helping a colleague
with an experiment, Masoud made an observation he couldn't explain. An
aha! moment came shortly thereafter.

"During a conversation with a physicist, it occurred to me that what
we had observed then was due to the release of a chemical species that
changed the surface tension and resulted in motion of particles that we observed," Masoud said.

That knowledge has led Masoud to continue analyzing the propulsion
behavior of diminutive robots -- only several microns in size -- and
the Marangoni effect, which is the transfer of mass and momentum due to
a gradient of surface tension at the interface between two fluids. In
addition to serving as an explanation for tears of wine, the Marangoni
effect helps circuit manufacturers dry silicon wafers and can be applied
to grow nanotubes in ordered arrays.

For Masoud's purposes, the effect helps him design surfing robots powered
by manipulating surface tension chemically. This solves a core problem
for our imagined C-H2O: How would a droid propel itself across the
surface of water without an engine and propeller? Detailed in research findings published recently in the journal Physical Review Fluids, Masoud, Jafari Kang and their collaborators used experimental measurements and numerical simulations to demonstrate that the microrobot surfers propel themselves in the direction of lower surface tension -- in reverse of
the expected direction.



==========================================================================
"We discovered that negative pressure is the primary contributor
to the fluid force experienced by the surfer and that this suction
force is mainly responsible for the reverse Marangoni propulsion,"
Masoud said. "Our findings pave the way for designing miniature surfing
robots. In particular, knowing that the direction of propulsion is altered
by a change in the surrounding boundary can be harnessed for designing
smart surfers capable of sensing their environment." Stability Studies on
the Horizon While Masoud's work focused on understanding how microrobots
can chemically manipulate their environment to create propulsion, future studies will zero in on the stability of these tiny surfers. Under what conditions are they stable? How do multiple surfers interact with each
other? The interactions could provide insight into the swarm dynamics
commonly seen in bacteria.

"We have just scratched the surface of learning the mechanisms through
which the surfers -- and other manipulators of surface tension -- move,"
Masoud said.

"Now we are building understanding toward how to control their movement."

========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by
Michigan_Technological_University. Original written by Kelley
Christensen. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.


========================================================================== Journal Reference:
1. Saeed Jafari Kang, Samrat Sur, Jonathan P. Rothstein, Hassan Masoud.

Forward, reverse, and no motion of Marangoni surfers under
confinement.

Physical Review Fluids, 2020; 5 (8) DOI:
10.1103/PhysRevFluids.5.084004 ==========================================================================

Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/10/201009162411.htm

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