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Instability of a thermal boundary layer in a constant electric field

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 March 2006

Robert J. Turnbull
Robert J. Turnbull
Affiliation:
Department of Electrical Engineering University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois 61801
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Abstract

The thermal boundary layer near a heated vertical plate in a poorly conducting liquid is subject to a horizontal d.c. electric field. If the electric field is strong enough, the boundary layer becomes unstable. In this paper a theory is developed to predict the onset of this instability. Experiments measuring the threshold voltage for instability are compared with the theoretical predictions. Other experiments are reported which determine the effect of this instability on the heat transferred from the heated plate.

Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Fluid Mechanics , Volume 47 , Issue 2 , 31 May 1971 , pp. 231 - 239
Copyright
© 1971 Cambridge University Press

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