Marangoni Effect

Application ID: 20329


Marangoni convection occurs when the surface tension of an interface (generally liquid-air) depends on the concentration of a species or on the temperature distribution. In the case of temperature dependence, the Marangoni effect is also called thermo-capillary convection. The Marangoni effect is of primary importance in the fields of welding, crystal growth and electron beam melting of metals.

Direct experimental studies are not easy to carry out in these systems because the materials are often metals and temperatures are very high. One possibility is to replace the real system with an experimental setup using a transparent liquid at ambient temperatures.

This model describes the 2D stationary behavior of a vessel filled with silicone oil, for which the thermo-physical properties are known. The aim of the study is to compute the temperature field that induces a flow through the Marangoni effect.

This model example illustrates applications of this type that would nominally be built using the following products: