Taylor vortices between two concentric rotating spheres

Abstract

The laminar viscous flow in the gap between two concentric spheres is investigated for a rotating inner sphere. The solution is obtained by solving the Navier-Stokes equations by means of finite-difference techniques, where the equations are restricted to axially symmetric flows. The flow field is hydrodynamically unstable above a critical Reynolds number. This investigation indicates that the critical Reynolds number beyond which Taylor vortices appear is slightly higher in a spherical gap than for the flow between concentric cylinders. The formation of Taylor vortices could be observed only for small gap widths s ≤ 0·17. The final state of the flow field depends on the initial conditions and the acceleration of the inner sphere. Steady and unsteady flow modes are predicted for various Reynolds numbers and gap widths. The results are in agreement with experiment if certain accuracy conditions of the finite-difference methods are satisfied. It is seen that the equatorial symmetry is of great importance for the development of the Taylor vortices in the gap.