Boundary layers in micropolar liquids

Abstract

Consideration is given to the steady flow of a micropolar liquid near a rigid boundary. It is shown that while micro-inertia itself is not important, nevertheless, some properties of the microstructure do play a vital rôle in determining the structure of the boundary layer. The Kármán—Polhausen method is used to provide an estimate of the shear stress at the boundary, and detailed calculations are given for flow near stagnation. The important significance of the standard length of the micropolar liquid is demonstrated for this flow, as for other flows in this medium.