# Fluid Dynamics of Research Pipelines

In applied mathematics, can fluid dynamics principles characterise the flow of clinical evidence through research pipelines in Africa versus high-income regions? This analysis applied viscosity and mass-flux models to 23,873 African and 190,644 United States trial records using registration-to-completion duration and results-reporting rates from ClinicalTrials.gov. Investigators reported scientific mass flux in trial-completions per year as the primary estimand for research system throughput. Africa's estimated annual completion flux of 557 trials per year was approximately five times lower than the United States flux of 4,673 per year. The high viscosity of the African pipeline reflected a completion rate of 95.4% with significant friction at enrollment, supply-chain, and regulatory stages. Europe functioned as a super-fluid grid with turbulent innovation flow while Africa exhibited laminar stagnation. These results apply fluid dynamics to quantify research system efficiency as a measurable physical property. Interpretation is limited by metaphorical application of physical constants to social systems.

## References

1. Alemayehu C, et al. "Behind the mask of the African clinical trials landscape." Trials. 2018;19:519.
2. Drain PK, et al. "Global migration of clinical trials." Nat Rev Drug Discov. 2018;17:765-766.

## Note Block

- Type: research
- App: https://mahmood726-cyber.github.io/africa-e156-students/health-disease/dashboards/fluid-dynamics.html
- Code: https://github.com/mahmood726-cyber/africa-e156-students/blob/master/health-disease/code/fluid-dynamics.py
- Data: ClinicalTrials.gov API v2
- Date: 2026-04-05