Rotating Rayleigh-Bénard convection: an experimental
study of steady and transient states
Peter Vorobieff, Robert Ecke
Summary
We investigate Rayleigh-Bénard convection in a cylindrical cell
with a radius-to-height ratio G=1/2 rotating
about a vertical axis. Thermochromic liquid crystals (TLC) are used for
flow visualization, making it possible to measure the distribution of temperature
in sections of the cell illuminated by a light sheet. We present temperature
maps corresponding to steady states existing at different dimensionless
rotation rates. We also present sequences of images depicting the time
evolution of temperature distribution near the top of the cell for the
cases of impulsive spin-up and spin-down.
Created by Peter Vorobieff for MST-10, LANL on April
2, 1997