Melting of a vertical ice block in a cavity filled with an aqueous solution is studied experimentally. Local interfacial temperatures and front velocities are measured allowing for a quantitative study of the coupling of the fluid motion, thermal equilibrium and the local heat transfers at the melting front. It is found that the front equilibrium shift is correlated to the classical parameter of the phase change process, that is the Stefan number, while the local heat transfer at the interface is correlated to the parameters characterizing thermosolutal natural convection. Quantitative results about the time evolution of the double-diffusive multi-layers structure in the fluid phase are obtained. The formation of the first thermosolutal layer is analyzed with the help of numerical simulations. It is found that the mechanism responsible for the onset of this layer is due to a well known double-diffusive instability.

1.
Huppert
,
H. E.
, and
Turner
,
J. S.
,
1980
, “
Ice Blocks Melting Into a Salinity Gradient
,”
J. Fluid Mech.
,
100
, pp.
367
384
.
2.
Huppert
,
H. E.
,
1990
, “
The Fluid Mechanics of Solidification
,”
J. Fluid Mech.
,
280
, pp.
287
302
.
3.
Prescott
,
P. J.
, and
Incropera
,
F. P.
,
1994
, “
Convective Transport Phenomena and Macrosegregation During Solidification of a Binary Metal Alloy: I—Numerical Predictions
,”
ASME J. Heat Transfer
,
116
, pp.
735
741
.
4.
Prescott
,
P. J.
, and
Incropera
,
F. P.
,
1994
, “
Convective Transport Phenomena and Macrosegregation During Solidification of a Binary Metal Alloy: II—Experiments and Comparisons With Numerical Predictions
,”
ASME J. Heat Transfer
,
116
, pp.
742
749
.
5.
Campbell
,
T. A.
, and
Koster
,
J. N.
,
1994
, “
Visualizations of Liquid-Solid Interface Morphologies in Gallium Subject to Natural Convection
,”
J. Cryst. Growth
,
140
, pp.
414
425
.
6.
Yin
,
H.
, and
Koster
,
J. N.
,
2000
, “
Double Diffusive Convective Flow and Interface Morphology During Transient Ga-5 percent In Alloy Melting
,”
J. Cryst. Growth
,
217
, pp.
170
182
.
7.
Tanny
,
J.
,
1995
, “
Experimental Study on the Crystallization of a Binary Melt at the Vertical Boundary of an Enclosure
,”
Int. J. Heat Mass Transf.
,
38
, pp.
1141
1150
.
8.
Wettlaufer
,
J. S.
, and
Worster
,
M. G.
,
1997
, “
Natural Convection During Solidification of an Alloy From Above With Application to the Evolution of Sea Ice
,”
J. Fluid Mech.
,
344
, pp.
291
316
.
9.
Josberger
,
E. G.
, and
Martin
,
S.
,
1981
, “
A Laboratory and Theoretical Study of the Boundary Layer Adjacent to a Vertical Melting Ice Wall in Salt Water
,”
J. Fluid Mech.
,
111
, pp.
439
473
.
10.
Carey
,
V. P.
, and
Gebhart
,
B.
,
1982
, “
Transport Near a Vertical Ice Surface Melting in Saline Water: Some Numerical Calculations
,”
J. Fluid Mech.
,
117
, pp.
379
402
.
11.
Carey
,
V. P.
, and
Gebhart
,
B.
,
1982
, “
Transport Near a Vertical Ice Surface Melting in Saline Water: Experiments at Low Salinities
,”
J. Fluid Mech.
,
117
, pp.
403
423
.
12.
Sammakia
,
B.
, and
Gebhart
,
B.
,
1983
, “
Transport Near a Vertical Ice Surface Melting in Water of Various Salinity Levels
,”
Int. J. Heat Mass Transf.
,
26
, pp.
1439
1452
.
13.
Woods
,
A. W.
,
1991
, “
Fluid Mixing During Melting
,”
Phys. Fluids A
,
3
, pp.
1393
1404
.
14.
Woods
,
A. W.
,
1992
, “
Melting and Dissolving
,”
J. Fluid Mech.
,
239
, pp.
429
448
.
15.
Kerr
,
R. C.
,
1994
, “
Melting Driven by Vigorous Compositional Convection
,”
J. Fluid Mech.
,
280
, pp.
255
285
.
16.
Kerr
,
R. C.
,
1994
, “
Dissolving Driven by Vigorous Compositional Convection
,”
J. Fluid Mech.
,
280
, pp.
287
302
.
17.
Sugawara
,
M.
, and
Irvine
,
T. F.
,
2000
, “
The Effect of Concentration Gradient on the Melting of a Horizontal Ice Plate From Above
,”
Int. J. Heat Mass Transf.
,
43
, pp.
1591
1601
.
18.
Beckerman
,
C.
, and
Viskanta
,
R.
,
1988
, “
Double-Diffusive Convection Due to Melting
,”
Int. J. Heat Mass Transf.
,
31
, pp.
2077
2089
.
19.
Beckerman
,
C.
, and
Viskanta
,
R.
,
1989
, “
An Experimental Study of Melting of Binary Mixtures With Double-Diffusive Convection in the Liquid
,”
Exp. Therm. Fluid Sci.
,
2
, pp.
17
26
.
20.
Be´nard
,
C.
,
Be´nard
,
R.
,
Bennacer
,
R.
, and
Gobin
,
D.
,
1996
, “
Melting Driven Thermohaline Convection
,”
Phys. Fluids
,
8
, pp.
112
130
.
21.
Joly, D., 1998, “Evolution de la structure des e´coulements de convection thermosolutale, induite par fusion: Etude expe´rimentale,” (in French) The`se de l’Universite´ Pierre et Marie Curie, Paris, France.
22.
Bejan, A., 1984, Convection Heat Transfer, John Wiley & Sons, New York.
23.
Thorpe
,
S. A.
,
Hutt
,
P. K.
, and
Soulsby
,
R.
,
1969
, “
The Effect of Horizontal Gradients on Thermohaline Convection
,”
J. Fluid Mech.
,
38
, pp.
375
400
.
24.
Washburn E. W., ed., 1926, International Critical Tables of Numerical Data, Physics, Chemistry and Technology, National Academic Press.
25.
Bennacer
,
R.
, and
Gobin
,
D.
,
1996
, “
Cooperating Thermosolutal Convection in Enclosures: I—Scale Analysis and Mass Transfer
,”
Int. J. Heat Mass Transf.
,
39
, pp.
671
681
.
26.
Chen
,
C. F.
,
Briggs
,
D. G.
, and
Wirtz
,
R. A.
,
1971
, “
Stability of Thermal Convection in a Salinity Gradient Due to Lateral Heating
,”
Int. J. Heat Mass Transf.
,
14
, pp.
57
65
.
27.
Chen
,
C. F.
, and
Chen
,
F.
,
1997
, “
Salt-Finger Convection Generated by Lateral Heating of a Solute Gradient
,”
J. Fluid Mech.
,
342
, pp.
161
176
.
28.
Kranenborg
,
E. J.
, and
Dijkstra
,
H. A.
,
1998
, “
On the Evolution of Double-Diffusive Intrusions Into a Stably Stratified Liquid: A Study of the Layer Merging Process
,”
Int. J. Heat Mass Transf.
,
41
, pp.
2743
2756
.
29.
Dijkstra
,
H. A.
, and
Kranenborg
,
E. J.
,
1998
, “
On the Evolution of Double-Diffusive Intrusions Into a Stably Stratified Liquid: The Physics of Self-Propagation
,”
Int. J. Heat Mass Transf.
,
41
, pp.
2113
2124
.
30.
Thangam
,
S.
,
Zebib
,
A.
, and
Chen
,
C. F.
,
1981
, “
Transition From Shear to Sideways Diffusive Instability in a Vertical Slot
,”
J. Fluid Mech.
,
112
, pp.
151
160
.
31.
Young
,
Y.
, and
Rosner
,
R.
,
1998
, “
Linear and Weakly Nonlinear Analysis of Doubly Diffusive Vertical Slot Convection
,”
Phys. Rev. E
,
57
, pp.
5554
5563
.
32.
Kerr
,
O. S.
, and
Tang
,
K. L.
,
1999
, “
Double-Diffusive Instabilities in a Vertical Slot
,”
J. Fluid Mech.
,
392
, pp.
213
232
.
33.
Hart
,
J. E.
,
1971
, “
On Sideways Diffusive Instability
,”
J. Fluid Mech.
,
49
, pp.
279
288
.
34.
Mergui
,
S.
, and
Gobin
,
D.
,
2000
, “
Transient Double Diffusive Convection in a Vertical Enclosure With Asymmetrical Boundary Conditions
,”
ASME J. Heat Transfer
,
122
, pp.
598
602
.
You do not currently have access to this content.