Local elastic properties of nano-confined fluids: A density functional study

• Expressions of elastic moduli for confined fluids are presented.
• Elastic moduli show inhomogeneity in the confining geometry.
• Contact elastic modulus and interfacial tension show the opposite trend with temperature.
• Influence of external potential on moduli is observed.

The understanding of mechanical properties of confined fluids is essential for modeling and manipulating of nano-scaled systems. Unlike the uniform phase, the confined fluids usually display different features in structure and related properties. Due to the presence of the confining geometry, the density profile and many physical and chemical properties may be position-dependent. The aim of our research is to derive an expression for the local elastic property by using the classical elastic theory. Both the bulk and shear moduli are expressed as functional of density of particle. The theoretical result derived is applied to the Lennard-Jones fluids confined in nano-cavity. Comparison of our numerical result and the simulation result is made and qualitative agreement is observed. Further, influence of bulk density, temperature and external potential on moduli is calculated and the physical mechanism is analyzed. Relationship between contact modulus and the interfacial tension is also calculated. Their opposite trend with temperature is observed.