The Electric Double Layer Effect on the Microchannel Flow Stability

The effect of the electric double layer (EDL) on the linear stability of Poiseuille planar channel flow is reported. It is shown that the EDL destabilises the linear modes, and that the critical Reynolds number decreases significantly when the thickness of the double layer becomes comparable with the height of the channel. The planar macro scale Poiseuille flow is metastable, and the inflexional EDL instability may further decrease the macro-transitional Reynolds number. There is a good correspondence between the estimated transitional Reynolds numbers and some experiments, showing that early transition is plausible in microchannels under some conditions.