Exact solutions for interfacial outflows with straining (Q2877697)

The paper examines a simple idealized model of the outflow from point or line sources in a straining flow of another fluid. The model can be used as an initial approximation for more complicated problems encountered in astrophysics. If two inviscid incompressible immiscible fluids are of nearly equal densities, the authors write the Laplace equation for the velocity potential in cylindrical or spherical coordinates, and use a kinematic boundary condition to derive a ``Bernoulli'' nonlinear partial differential equation (PDE) that describes the interfacial shape evolution with time. This equation is transformed to a linear PDE by means of a change of variable, and closed-form solutions are obtained based on the method of characteristics. Two such solutions are illustrated.