Interfacial cellular mixing and a conjecture on global deposit morphology

Abstract

We report the development of cellular mixing at a vertical interface between miscible solutions with a single diffusing species. For the binary systems studied, this patterned convection occurs only when the interface is driven. Experimental results support the interpretation of this hydrodynamic instability as a surface-tension effect. We relate this convective instability, and viscous fingering between fluids with small relative viscosities, to the macroscopic morphology of electrodeposits and precipitates.