Michele Castellana (Institut Curie)

We present IRENE,  a fluId layeR finitE-elemeNt softwarE, which allows to solve numerically the intricate dynamics of a two-dimensional viscous fluid layer embedded in three-dimensional space. 

IRENE is designed in a flexible, open-source way, and it may handle flows on open surfaces with a large variety of boundary conditions and obstacles, a wide range of physical regimes---both laminar and turbulent flows---and geometries, capturing the complex coupling between in-plane flows, out-of-plane deformations, surface tension, and elastic response. We validate IRENE against known analytical and numerical results, and demonstrate its capabilities through  physical examples. In particular, we discuss IRENE’s solution for laminar flows of lipidic membranes on a microscopic level, to turbulent air flows on both a macroscopic scale and planetary level.

Finally, we present the future directions for IRENE’s development in the field of cell biology, for describing the formation of spikes in cell membranes coupled to actin flows.