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Faculty of Technology – FT
Department of Mechanical Engineering – ENM
Postgraduate Program in Mechanichal Science – PCMEC

Laboratory of Microhydrodynamics and Rheology – Micro-Reo
Laboratory of Scientific Computing in Complex Flows – LCEC
Fluid Mechanics of Complex Flows Research Group – Vortex

Professor Francisco Ricardo Cunha
BSc., MSc., Ph.D

 

BSc and MSc (University of Brasília – Brazil),
Ph.D: Department of Appl. Math. & Theoretical Physics-DAMTP-University of Cambridge – UK
Postdoctoral : Yale University – USA and University of California in Santa Barbara – UCSB-USA
ORCID ID: 0000-0003-2882-8195 – Scopus ID: 7102047382 – Lattes-CNPq – Google Scholar

Address

University of Brasília – Department of Mechanical Engineering – FT

Postgraduate Program in Mechanical Science – PCMEC/ENM (Capes evaluation – score of 7,0)

Fluid Mechanics of Complex Flows – Research Group – VORTEX
Campus Universitário – Asa Norte, Brasília-DF, BRAZIL, 70910-900
e-mail.: frcunha@unb.br

Courses in the Current Semester UnB – 2/2026

Link: Undergraduate Course: Fluid Mechanics II-ENM
Link: Graduate Course: Non-Newtonian Fluid Dynamics

Complex Fluids – Microhydrodynamic of Suspensions

To Whom It May Concern

The Fluid Mechanics Area at ENM/FT–UnB (1998–present) invites applications from prospective students interested in pursuing a Master’s or Doctoral degree in Complex Fluid Flows within the VORTEX Group, part of the Mechanical Sciences Program (PCMEC). We welcome you to learn more about our research activities, academic environment, and the set of courses developed, formalized, and taught by our group. These include:

  • (i) Continuum Mechanics

  • (ii) Fluid Dynamics

  • (iii) Perturbation Methods in Fluid Mechanics

  • (iv) Microhydrodynamics

  • (v) Multiphase Flow

  • (vi) Non-Newtonian Fluid Dynamics

  • (vii) Hydrodynamics of Magnetic Fluids (FHD)

  • (viii) Magnetohydrodynamics (MHD)

  • (ix) Advanced Topics in Fluid Dynamics

  • (x) Experimental Fluid Mechanics

We look forward to welcoming motivated students to our research group!

RESEARCH

This professor serves as the scientific leader of the Complex Fluid Mechanics Group and the Microhydrodynamics and Rheology Laboratory at the University of Brasília. His research focuses on the rheology of complex fluids, the hydrodynamics of magnetic fluids, non-Newtonian fluid dynamics, and the microhydrodynamics of active and passive particles in suspension, as well as the mechanics of mobile suspensions more broadly. His work is inherently interdisciplinary, integrating fundamental theory, advanced computational modeling, and experimental investigations to address contemporary challenges in complex fluid flows.

A real magnetic emulsion composed of ferrofluid microdroplets (volume fraction = 1%) is considered. Upon the application of an external magnetic field, the fluid exhibits strong anisotropy already at t=0, leading to the formation of elongated chain-like structures. This system therefore represents a highly complex fluid. (M.F.S. Aleixo Filho & F.R. Cunha, 2026)

We experimentally investigate the collective swimming behavior of Caenorhabditis elegans nematodes in viscoelastic media, focusing on bulk-averaged locomotion dynamics obtained from ensembles of approximately 100 individuals across multiple realizations. The study examines the hydrodynamic interactions among nematodes suspended in an agar-based viscoelastic fluid, considering different volume fractions of both the living organisms and the macromolecular constituents of the surrounding medium. The analysis includes the characterization of nematode size distributions, average beating frequencies, and the wavelengths of the traveling muscular waves that propagate along their slender cylindrical bodies. In addition, we determine the mean body curvature and the average propulsion velocity of populations of small nematodes, with body lengths ranging from approximately 100 to 500 μm, under low-Reynolds-number and high-Péclet-number conditions. The body-nematodes bending (muscular waves) effect on its self-propulsion is also observed and characterized. Scaling arguments based on balances of viscous, bending and elastic forces are also explored in this research. The rheology of the active suspension undergoing oscillatory shear of small and moderate amplitudes is largely explored regarding the viscous and elastic effects of the active particle collective motion. This video was produced at the Laboratory of Microhydrodynamics and Rheology of the Vortex Group, University of Brasília (Brazil). Related studies can be found in S. Malvar and F.R. Cunha, Physics of Fluids (2021), Rheologica Acta (2019), and Biomicrofluidics (2017), . The C. elegans nematodes used in this study were kindly provided by C. E. Winter (Department of Parasitology, University of São Paulo, Brazil). Y. G. Irilan & F. R. Cunha – Physics of Fluid, 2022.

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