Interacting fronts in a model for binary-mixture convection
- Northwestern Univ., Evanston, IL (United States). Dept. of Engineering Sciences and Applied Mathematics
- Universidad de Navarra, (Spain). Dept. de Fisica y Matematica Aplicada
Motivated by the observation of localized traveling-wave states (`pulses`) in convection in binary liquid mixtures, the interaction of fronts is investigated in a real Ginzburg-Landau equation which is coupled to a large-scale field. In that system the Ginzburg-Landau equation describes the traveling-wave amplitude and the large-scale field corresponds to a concentration mode which arises due to the slowness of mass diffusion. For single fronts the large-scale field can lead to a hysteretic transition between slow and fast fronts. Its contribution to the interaction between fronts can be attractive as well as repulsive and depends strongly on their direction of propagation. Based on this mechanism alone, pairs of fronts in binary-mixture convection are expected to form stable pulses if they travel backward, i.e. opposite to the linear group velocity. For positive velocities the interaction becomes attractive and destabilizes the pulses. This is in qualitative agreement with recent experimental results. This new localization mechanism does not require any dispersion in contrast to that operating in the complex Ginzburg-Landau equation.
- Research Organization:
- Northwestern Univ., Evanston, IL (United States). Dept. of Engineering Sciences and Applied Mathematics
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE, Washington, DC (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- FG02-92ER14303
- OSTI ID:
- 10158972
- Report Number(s):
- DOE/ER/14303-3; CONF-9404137-3; ON: DE94013595; BR: KC0401060
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: 12. symposium on energy engineering sciences,Argonne, IL (United States),27-29 Apr 1994; Other Information: PBD: [1994]
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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