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Anomalous Water Flow in Sub-Nanometer Carbon Nanoconfinement
Md Masuduzzaman1,2, Chirodeep Bakli3, Murat Barisik4
1Robert F. Smith School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 14853, USA.
Small (Weinheim an Der Bergstrasse, Germany)
|October 16, 2025
Summary
Sub-nanometer confinement dramatically alters fluid flow, with water moving up to three times faster than other fluids in nanochannels. This anomalous transport is due to disrupted water networks and unique nanoscale forces.
Area of Science:
- Fluid dynamics
- Nanoscale science
- Computational physics
Background:
- Classical hydrodynamic models fail at sub-nanometer scales.
- Molecular interactions dominate fluid transport in ultra-confined environments.
Purpose of the Study:
- Analyze transport properties of Lennard-Jones fluids and water in carbon nanotubes and graphene nanochannels.
- Investigate anomalous fluid transport under sub-nanometer confinement.
Main Methods:
- Advanced molecular dynamics simulations.
- Systematic analysis of fluid transport properties.
Main Results:
- Water exhibits up to threefold higher flow velocities than Lennard-Jones fluids.
- Anomalous transport attributed to disrupted hydrogen bonds, Pauli exclusion forces, and reduced viscosity.
- Curvilinear geometries enhance ordering and flux; planar channels impose steric constraints.
Conclusions:
- Sub-nanometer confinement induces significant deviations from classical fluid dynamics.
- Emergence of pseudo-continuum behavior observed in specific regimes.
- Provides a framework for extending continuum concepts to atomistic fluid flow.
