Convective instability in a two-layer system of reacting fluids with concentration-dependent diffusion

The development of convective instability in a two-layer system of miscible fluids placed in a narrow vertical gap has been studied theoretically and experimentally. The upper and lower layers are formed with aqueous solutions of acid and base, respectively. When the layers are brought into contact, the frontal neutralization reaction begins. We have found experimentally a new type of convective instability, which is characterized by the spatial localization and the periodicity of the structure observed for the first time in the miscible systems. We have tested a number of different acid–base systems and have found a similar patterning there. In our opinion, it may indicate that the discovered effect is of a general nature and should be taken into account in reaction–diffusion–convection problems as another tool with which the reaction can govern the movement of the reacting fluids. We have shown that, at least in one case (aqueous solutions of nitric acid and sodium hydroxide), a new type of instability called as the concentration-dependent diffusion convection is responsible for the onset of the fluid flow. It arises when the diffusion coefficients of species are different and depend on their concentrations. This type of instability can be attributed to a variety of double-diffusion convection. A mathematical model of the new phenomenon has been developed using the system of reaction–diffusion–convection equations written in the Hele–Shaw approximation. It is shown that the instability can be reproduced in the numerical experiment if only one takes into account the concentration dependence of the diffusion coefficients of the reagents. The dynamics of the base state, its linear stability and nonlinear development of the instability are presented. It is also shown that by varying the concentration of acid in the upper layer one can achieve the occurrence of chemo-convective solitary cell in the bulk of an almost immobile fluid. Good agreement between the experimental data and the results of numerical simulations is observed.