Solutal Convection in Porous Media

Explore solutal convection in porous media through this comprehensive lecture by Marc Hesse from the University of Texas at Austin. Delve into the intricacies of molecular and dispersive Rayleigh numbers, examining their impact on mass flux and finger spacing in convective patterns. Discover how bead size in porous media affects these parameters and learn about the limitations of flux at large bead sizes due to mechanical dispersion anisotropy. Analyze numerical simulations at the Darcy scale and their correlation with pore-scale results, focusing on the role of mechanical dispersion anisotropy. Investigate the transition between diffusion and dispersion-dominated regimes, and understand the implications of convective up- and downwellings in individual pores. Gain insights into buoyancy-driven pore-scale mixing and its unique characteristics compared to pressure-driven flows, highlighting the need for new approaches in upscaling to the Darcy scale. The lecture covers various aspects including time scales, fluid mechanics, numerical simulations, analog fluid systems, experiments, dispersion properties, and density profiles, concluding with a summary and Q&A session.