Streamlines and detached wakes in steady flow past a spherical liquid drop

Abstract

The flow interior and exterior to a viscous liquid drop in steady motion in an unbounded quiescent fluid is investigated using the perturbation solution of Taylor and Acrivos (1964) to first order in the Reynolds number. New analytical results are derived for the detached wake behind the drop. It is found that as the viscosity of the drop tends to infinity the wake becomes attached to the surface of the drop and the results of Proudman and Pearson (1957) for a solid sphere are rederived.