Stress tensor of inhomogeneous fluids

C. Varea and A. Robledo

Physica A: Statistical Mechanics and its Applications, 1996, vol. 233, issue 1, 132-144

Abstract: We derive explicit expressions for the stress tensor for general inhomogeneities in a one-component simple fluid in terms of density gradients and moments of the direct correlation function. The expressions follow from the change in grand potential ΔΩV that takes place in a selected portion of fluid of volume V as an arbitrary strain is applied to it. We employ the free energy density functional approach to determine ΔΩV, and consider two model mean-field density functionals, one spatially non-local and the other a local Landau form that contains a squared-gradient and a squared-laplacian terms. In the first case the expression for the stress tensor is spatially non-local, and in the latter case the tensor can be written down in the form of a volume σ and a surface contribution τ. These two terms can be modified by the transformation of volume into surface terms, or vice versa, of the fixed change ΔΩV, and in this way symmetric forms for both σ and τ can be obtained. We observe that the surface term τ and, more generally, the non-locality of the stress tensor are features that arise as the finite range of molecular interactions is restored in a local description by incorporation of higher order terms in the derivatives of the density. Our results corroborate expressions for the elastic bending free energy terms of curved interfaces derived previously.

Date: 1996
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378437196002440
Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only. Journal offers the option of making the article available online on Science direct for a fee of $3,000

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:phsmap:v:233:y:1996:i:1:p:132-144

DOI: 10.1016/S0378-4371(96)00244-0

Access Statistics for this article

Physica A: Statistical Mechanics and its Applications is currently edited by K. A. Dawson, J. O. Indekeu, H.E. Stanley and C. Tsallis

More articles in Physica A: Statistical Mechanics and its Applications from Elsevier
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Catherine Liu ().