(272b) Nonlinear Dynamics of Non-Newtonian Fluids

Non-Newtonian fluids display an interaction between flow and microstructure that leads to strongly nonlinear behavior, including bifurcations, multiplicities and singularities. These phenomena are fundamentally interesting and often important in applications. We review here some of our group's work in this field, discussing problems that range from the dynamics of liquid crystals and micellar surfactacts in flow to the effect of polymer additives on the nonlinear transition to turbulence.