Various flow patterns in thermocapillary convection in half-zone liquid bridge of high Prandtl number fluid

Various flow patterns induced by a thermocapillary-driven convection in a half-zone liquid bridge of a high Prandtl number fluid (Pr = O(10)) far beyond the critical condition were investigated experimentally. After the onset of oscillatory convection, one can observe several types of flow patterns with increasing a temperature difference between the both end surfaces of the bridge. The flow patterns were categorized through flow visualization, measurement of surface temperature variation and reconstruction of the pseudo-phase space. (C) 2003 COSPAR. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.