Rotationally affected internally heated convection

Abstract

We study convection in a volumetrically heated fluid which is cooled from both plates and is under rotation through the use of direct numerical simulations. The onset of convection matches similar systems and predictions from asymptotic analysis. At low rotation rates, the fluid becomes more organised, enhancing heat transport and increasing boundary layer asymmetry, whereas high rotation rates suppress convection. Velocity and temperature statistics reveal that the top unstably stratified boundary layer exhibits behaviour consistent with other rotating convective systems, while the bottom boundary shows a unique interaction between unstable stratification and Ekman boundary layers. Additional flow statistics such as energy dissipation are analysed to rationalise the flow behaviour.