Scientists use Energy2D to simulate the effect of micro flow on molecular self-assembly

Copyright: ACS Nano, American Chemical Society

Self-assembled peptide nanostructures have unique properties that lead to applications in electrical devices and functional molecular recognition. Exactly how to control the self-assembly process in a solution is a hot research topic. Since a solution is a fluid, a little fluid mechanics would be needed to understand how micro flow affects the self-assembly of the peptide molecules.

ACS Nano, a journal of the American Chemical Society, published a research article on December 11 that includes a result of using our Energy2D software to simulate turbulent situations in which the non-uniform plumes rising from the substrate result in the formation of randomly arranged diphenylalanine (FF) rods and tubes. This paper, titled “Morphology and Pattern Control of Diphenylalanine Self-Assembly via Evaporative Dewetting,” is the result of collaboration between scientists from Nanjing University and the City University of Hong Kong.

We are absolutely thrilled by the fact that many scientists have used Energy2D in their work. As far as we know, this is the second published scientific research paper that has used Energy2D.

On a separate avenue, many engineers are already using Energy2D to aid their design work. For example, in a German forum about renewable energy, an engineer has recently used the tool to make sense of his experimental results with various air collector designs. He reported that the results are “confirmed by the experiences of several users: pressure losses and less volume of air in the blowing operation” (translated from German using Google Translate).

It is these successful applications of Energy2D in the real world that will make it a relevant tool in science and engineering for a very long time.