Effects of Coriolis force and nonuniform temperature gradient on the Rayleigh–Benard convection

Abstract

The effects of the Coriolis force and a nonuniform temperature gradient on the onset of the Rayleigh–Benard convection in a thin, horizontal, rotating fluid layer is studied using linear-stability analysis. It is shown analytically that the method and rate of heating, the Coriolis force, and the nature of the bounding surfaces of the fluid layer significantly influence the value of the Rayleigh number at the onset of marginal convection. The mechanism for suppressing or augmenting convection is discussed in detail. The Galerkin technique employed here is much easier to use than that the method of Chandrasekhar (5). The analytical results obtained from using this procedure are compared with the published experimental data and the results obtained from numerical procedures; good agreement is found.