The interaction between the secondary and the common convective envelope in a contact binary

Abstract

It has been suggested that a contact system almost certainly cannot exist in static equilibrium undergoing periodic thermal relaxation oscillation. The energy transfer in a common convective envelope (CCE) makes the secondary have a complex structure, so the interaction between the secondary and CCE may play an important role in the structure and evolution of the contact system. The present paper tests the TRO theory and investigates this interaction with polytropic stellar model from the observational datum of 22 contact systems directly. It shows that the A-type systems are expanding with a velocity of 25.04 m yr−1, and the W-type systems are contracting at velocity of 3.10 m yr−1 by the calculations about these contact systems. Also, we calculate the ratio of energy transfer and the interaction coefficient for them. The HS (hot secondary) model is supported by our calculations. These results may help to understand the TRO theory and the W-phenomenon.