The paper presents results of an investigation of the response of an incompressible fluid in a circular micropipe and a parallel-plate microchannel to a sudden time-independent pressure drop. Solutions of the problem were obtained analytically using the Laplace transform technique and numerically using the lattice Boltzmann method. The unsteady velocity profiles in the pipe and in the channel were obtained with the help of the infinite series solutions validated against numerical simulations. In line with the expectations, the flow asymptotically tends to the fully developed pattern, which is attained quicker for smaller Knudsen numbers. The solution enabled also obtaining relations to estimate the hydraulic resistance coefficient. C 2015 AIP Publishing LLC.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.