Metachronal Paddling

Metachronal paddling can be described as the sequential oscillation of appendages whereby adjacent paddles maintain a nearly constant phase difference. This mechanism is widely used in nature, both in locomotion such as swimming in crustaceans and in fluid transport such as the clearance of mucus in the mammalian lung. Aside from the wide range of applications, metachronal paddling can be observed across a wide range of Reynolds number regimes.

I work on simulating the hydrodynamics of metachronal paddling in brine shrimp (Artemia). Brine shrimp are small aquatic crustaceans who lay dormat eggs and are widely used in aquaculture. Their thoracopods are spaced closely together and beat with a small phase difference. We are interested in the hydrodynamics and efficiency of this swimming pattern, which has not previously been rigorously explored.