The influence of boundary conditions on the contact problem in a 3D Navier-Stokes Flow

Abstract

We consider the free fall of a sphere above a wall in a viscous incompressible fluid. We investigate the influence of boundary conditions on the finite-time occurrence of contact between the sphere and the wall. We prove that slip boundary conditions enable to circumvent the "no-collision" paradox associated with no-slip boundary conditions. We also examine the case of mixed boundary conditions.