Turbulence as a Tool: Emergent selective filtering in Turbulent Flow

Turbulence is typically viewed as a destructive and unpredictable force, making it challenging to control or create order from it, as seen in tornadoes or severe in-flight disturbances. In this work, we demonstrate that turbulent flows can, under the right conditions, be shaped to induce order and functionality. In particular we design particles that leverage turbulence to drive selective transport and separation of particles in a Taylor-Couette flow chamber even in the presence of intense mixing. This effect arises from an interplay between inertial forces and viscous interactions, enabling targeted particle capture and storage on the ~100 micron scale driven by turbulence. These results highlight a counterintuitive role for turbulence as an organizing mechanism, opening new avenues for passive particle capture in complex flow environments with potential applications in sensing, filtration, and targeted assembly in the mesoscopic length scale.