Diodicity of MicroTesla Valves Under Various Re Numbers

Area of Science:

• Fluid Dynamics
• Microfluidics
• Mechanical Engineering

Background:

• The Tesla valve, a century-old passive flow device, is gaining renewed interest for modern engineering applications.
• Diodicity (D), the ratio of reverse to forward pressure drop, is the primary metric for evaluating Tesla valve performance.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the relationship between the number of stages (N) and the Reynolds number (Re) on the diodicity (D) of micro Tesla valves.
• To determine the proportionality between the number of stages and diodicity for microfluidic applications.

Main Methods:

• Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations were conducted using the OpenFoam platform.
• Simulations covered multi-staged micro Tesla valves with N=2, 3, 5, 6, and 10 stages.
• Flow conditions ranged from Reynolds numbers (Re) of 50 to 450.

Main Results:

• Maximum diodicity values increased with the number of stages and Reynolds number.
• For N=2, 6, and 10 stages at Re=450, maximum diodicity values were D=1.43, D=2.76, and D=3.58, respectively.
• A positive correlation was observed between the number of stages (N) and diodicity (D).

Conclusions:

• The number of stages and Reynolds number are critical parameters for optimizing micro Tesla valve performance.
• Increasing the number of stages in micro Tesla valves leads to enhanced diodicity, making them more effective passive flow control devices.