Gayathri Jayaraman, Sanoop Ramachandran, Somdeb Ghose, M. Saad Bhamla, P. B. Sunil Kumar, R. Adhikari
We simulate the non-local Stokesian hydrodynamics of an elastic filament with a permanent distribution of stresslets along its contour. A bending instability of an initially straight filament induces curvatures in the distribution of stresslets, thus producing a net hydrodynamic flow in which the filament propels autonomously. Depending on the ratio of stresslet strength to elasticity, the linear instability can develop into unsteady states with large-amplitude non-linear deformations, where the filament conformation and the center of mass velocity fluctuate frequently. In planar flows, these unsteady states finally decay into steady states where the filament has constant translational or rotational motion. Our results can be tested in molecular-motor filament mixtures, synthetic chains of autocatalytic particles or other linearly connected systems where chemical energy is converted to mechanical energy in a fluid environment.
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http://arxiv.org/abs/1204.1416
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