The effect of centrifugal acceleration on axisymmetric convection in a shallow rotating cylinder or annulus

Abstract

This paper considers the nature of stationary axisymmetric convection in a shallow rotating annulus or cylinder heated from below. The horizontal and vertical walls of the container are assumed to be perfect conductors and insulators respectively. The critical regime is considered in which the circulations due to the centrifugal force and the vertical gravitational instability are of equal significance. Among the effects of the centrifugal acceleration on the gravitational instability are a shift in the value of the Rayleigh number at which instability sets in, a modification in the distribution and amplitude of convection cells in the container and, most significantly, a smooth transition to finite amplitude convection as the Rayleigh number is increased.