An analysis of convection in a mushy layer with a deformable permeable interface

Roper, S.M. , Davis, S.H. and Voorhees, P.W. (2008) An analysis of convection in a mushy layer with a deformable permeable interface. Journal of Fluid Mechanics, 596, pp. 333-352. (doi: 10.1017/S0022112007009469)

Abstract

We study the dynamics of a mushy layer in directional solidification for the case of a thin near-eutectic mush with a deformable and permeable mush–liquid interface. We examine the onset of convection using linear stability analysis, and the weakly nonlinear growth of liquid inclusions that signal the onset of chimneys. This analysis is compared to past analyses in which the mush–liquid interface is replaced by a rigid impermeable lid. We find qualitative agreement between the two models, but the rigid-lid approximation gives substantially different quantitative behaviour. In linear theory, the rigid-lid approximation leads to an over-estimate of the critical Rayleigh number and wavenumber of the instability. The condition for the onset of oscillatory instability is also changed by a factor of about 5 in composition number C. In the weakly nonlinear theory, the location of the onset of liquid inclusions is near the undisturbed front for the free-boundary analysis, whereas it lies at the centre of the mushy layer when the rigid-lid approximation is used. For hexagonal patterns, the boundary between regions of parameter space in which up and down hexagons are stable, shifts as a result of coupling between the liquid and mush regions.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Roper, Dr Steven
• Authors: Roper, S.M., Davis, S.H., and Voorhees, P.W.
• Subjects: T Technology > TC Hydraulic engineering. Ocean engineering
• College/School: College of Science and Engineering > School of Mathematics and Statistics > Mathematics
• Journal Name: Journal of Fluid Mechanics
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press
• ISSN: 0022-1120
• ISSN (Online): 1469-7645
• Published Online: 17 January 2008
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2008 Cambridge University Press
• First Published: First published in Journal of Fluid Mechanics 596:333-352
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced in accordance with the permission of the publisher.