Hydrodynamic analysis of flagellated bacteria swimming in corners of rectangular channels

The influence of nearby solid surfaces on the motility of bacteria is of fundamental importance as these interactions govern the ability of the microorganisms to explore their environment and form sessile colonies. Reducing biofouling in medical implants and controlling the transport of bacterial cells in a microfluidic device are two applications that could benefit from a detailed understanding of swimming in microchannels. In this study, we investigate the self-propelled motion of a model bacterium, driven by rotating a single helical flagellum, in such an environment. In particular, we focus on the corner region of a large channel modeled as two perpendicular sections of no-slip planes joined with a rounded corner. We numerically solve the equations of Stokes flow using the boundary element method to obtain the swimming velocities at different positions and orientations relative to the channel corner. From these velocities, we construct many trajectories to ascertain the general behavior of the swimmers. Considering only hydrodynamic interactions between the bacterium and the channel walls, we show that some swimmers can become trapped near the corner while moving, on average, along the axis of the channel. This result suggests that such bacteria may be found at much higher densities in corners than in other parts of the channel. Another implication is that these corner accumulating bacteria may travel quickly through channels since they are guided directly along the corner and do not turn back or swim transversely across the channel.