Effects of polymers on the cavitating flow around a cylinder: A Large-scale molecular dynamics analysis

The cavitation flow of linear-polymer solutions around a cylinder is studied by performing a large-scale molecular dynamics simulation. The addition of polymer chains remarkably suppresses the cavitation. The polymers are stretched into a linear shape near the cylinder and entrained in the vortex behind the cylinder. As the polymers stretch, the elongational viscosity increases, which suppresses the vortex formation. Furthermore, the polymers exhibit an entropic elasticity owing to the stretching. This elastic energy increases the local temperature, which inhibits the cavitation inception. These effects of polymers result in the dramatic suppression of cavitation.