Micro-fluid dynamics of undulatory locomotion was studied numerically. We developed a time-dependent solution to the full Navier-Stokes equations at low Reynolds numbers (Res) ranging from 10-5 to 100. The method was validated through a study of flow around a circular cylinder and a conceptual model of an undulating finite sheet. Results are presented for a two-dimensional model of bacterial flagella undulatory locomotion. The geometry and kinematics of our model were based on the data of a bacterium. Our results show that neglecting the inertial effects due to rapid lateral undulation, as observed in bacterial flagellar movements, is inadequate when one tries to predict the thrust-generation, which can be achieved by utilization of both pressure and shear-stress components.
