Mixture theory for diffuse interface models of two-phase flows

Diffuse interface models are an important class of models used to describe multi-phase flows. In the case of incompressible viscous fluids there are a number of different diffuse interface models which have been known for many years. Nevertheless, a model based on mixture theory with a full set of conservation laws for the conservation of linear momentum of each constituent was not yet available. This gap was filled by ten Eikelder et al. ( J. Fluid Mech. , in press) recently and a first comparison with known models of Navier–Stokes/Cahn–Hilliard type is given. A detailed understanding of the relations between these models remains an important question.