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Temperature characteristics along the centreline in quasi-two-dimensional Rayleigh–Bénard convection filled with liquid metal

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  07 October 2025

Yan-Wu Cao ,
Ming-Zhu Ai ,
Juan-Cheng Yang Open the ORCID record for Juan-Cheng Yang [Opens in a new window]  and
Ming-Jiu Ni Open the ORCID record for Ming-Jiu Ni [Opens in a new window]
Yan-Wu Cao
Affiliation:
State Key Laboratory for Strength and Vibration of Mechanical Structures and School of Aerospace Engineering, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an 710049, PR China
Ming-Zhu Ai
Affiliation:
State Key Laboratory for Strength and Vibration of Mechanical Structures and School of Aerospace Engineering, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an 710049, PR China
Juan-Cheng Yang*
Affiliation:
State Key Laboratory for Strength and Vibration of Mechanical Structures and School of Aerospace Engineering, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an 710049, PR China
Ming-Jiu Ni*
Affiliation:
State Key Laboratory for Strength and Vibration of Mechanical Structures and School of Aerospace Engineering, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an 710049, PR China School of Engineering Science, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 101408, PR China State Key Laboratory of Nonlinear Mechanics, Institute of Mechanics and University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, PR China
*
Corresponding authors: Juan-Cheng Yang, yangjc@xjtu.edu.cn; Ming-Jiu Ni, mjni@ucas.ac.cn
Corresponding authors: Juan-Cheng Yang, yangjc@xjtu.edu.cn; Ming-Jiu Ni, mjni@ucas.ac.cn
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Abstract

In the present study, we observe interesting profiles and fluctuations in a quasi-two-dimensional thermal convection system filled with low-Prandtl-number liquid metal. A high-precision thermistor, which can be precisely controlled to move up and down, is used to measure the temperature distribution along the centreline of a convection cell. As the thermistor probes move away from the heated wall surface, the measured temperatures initially decrease to values below the central temperature of the cell, then recover to the central temperature, indicating an inverse temperature gradient. Furthermore, by analysing the root-mean-square temperature ($\sigma _T (z)$) along the centreline, we find a second peak away from the wall location, which has never been reported before, in addition to the first peak associated with the thermal boundary thickness. This phenomenon is also confirmed by the results of third- and fourth-order moments of temperature. Experimental results, together with insights from previous studies, suggest that in liquid metal, the distinct flow organisation arising from the large thermal diffusivity plays an important role in shaping the observed temperature distribution.

JFM classification

Convection: Buoyant boundary layers

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JFM Papers
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Journal of Fluid Mechanics , Volume 1020 , 10 October 2025 , A33
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© The Author(s), 2025. Published by Cambridge University Press

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