Electro-vortex flows in a square layer of liquid metal

I. Kolesnichenko¹ - S. Khripchenko¹ - D. Buchenau² - G. Gerbeth²

¹ Institute of Continuous Media Mechanics, Perm, Russia
² Forschungszentrum Rossendorf, Dresden, Germany }

Abstract
We study electro-vortex flows generated by electro-magnetic forces in a shallow square layer of liquid metal. The force driving the flow is produced by the interaction between the electric current flowing through the layer and its own magnetic field. Rotational parts of that force are particularly caused by ferromagnetic yokes placed around the layer. Depending of the position and type of those yokes flows of one-, two- or four-eddies are initiated. The basic flow structure and the related velocity oscillations have been investigated both by experimental techniques using the ultrasound Doppler velocimetry and by numerical calculations. Compared to the single vortex flow the double vortex flow shows a much higher level of large-scale velocity oscillations. The theoretical model turned out to be in good agreement with the experimental data. Figs 11, Refs 15.