Free boundary problems for Stokes flow, with applications to the growth of biological tissues

Abstract

We formulate, analyse and numerically simulate what are arguably the two simplest Stokes-flow free boundary problems relevant to tissue growth, extending the classical Stokes free boundary problem by incorporating (i) a volumetric source (the nutrient-rich case) and (ii) a volumetric sink, a surface source and surface compression (the nutrient-poor case). Both two- and three-dimensional cases are considered. A number of phenomena are identified and characterised thereby, most notably a buckling-associated instability in case (ii).