A Numerical Study in Three Space Dimensions of Bénard Convection in a Rotating Fluid

Abstract

The primitive, nonlinear, Boussinesq equations of motion, continuity and thermodynamic energy are integrated numerically in three space dimensions and time to study convection driven by unstable vertical density gradients and subject to Coriolis forces. Parameter values are chosen to permit quantitative comparison with data from laboratory experiments for rotating Bénard convection in water. The model realistically simulates the structure of the convection cells, their horizontal scale, and the mean vertical heat transport. The experimentally observed phenomenon of a non-monotone dependence of heat transport on rotation rate is reproduced and shown to be a consequence of the rotational constraint on the wavelength of the cells.