Particle capture and low-Reynolds-number flow around a circular cylinder

Particle capture, whereby suspended particles contact and adhere to a solid surface (a ‘collector’), is an important mechanism in a range of environmental processes. In aquatic systems, typically characterized by low collector Reynolds numbers ($\mathit{Re}$), the rate of particle capture determines the efficiencies of a range of processes such as seagrass pollination, suspension feeding by corals and larval settlement. In this paper, we use direct numerical simulation (DNS) of a two-dimensional laminar flow to accurately quantify the rate of capture of low-inertia particles by a cylindrical collector for $\mathit{Re}\leq 47$ (i.e. a range where there is no vortex shedding). We investigate the dependence of both the capture rate and maximum capture angle on both the collector Reynolds number and the ratio of particle size to collector size. The inner asymptotic expansion of Skinner (Q. J. Mech. Appl. Maths, vol. 28, 1975, pp. 333–340) for flow around a cylinder is extended and shown to provide an excellent framework for the prediction of particle capture and flow close to the leading face of a cylinder up to $\mathit{Re}= 10$. Our results fill a gap between theory and experiment by providing, for the first time, predictive capability for particle capture by aquatic collectors in a wide (and relevant) Reynolds number and particle size range.