Compositional convection and stratification of earth's core

Details Compositional convection and stratification of earth's core Compositional convection and stratification of earth's core

Jan 1981

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=1981natur.289..393f&link_type=abstract

Nature, vol. 289, Jan. 29, 1981, p. 393, 394.

Computer Science

77

Buoyancy, Convection, Earth Core, Geodynamics, Planetary Composition, Stratification, Diffusion Coefficient, Heat Flux, Iron, Latent Heat, Radioactive Decay, Thermodynamic Equilibrium

Scientific paper

The relative importance of thermal and compositional buoyancy in the stratification of the earth's core is discussed. The proposal that the freezing of an iron-rich inner core leads to the release of iron-depleted light material in the liquid adjacent to the freezing interface is reviewed, and the density profile which results upon the diffusion of this light, buoyant material and the latent heat released as the core freezes is calculated. It is found that the compositional effects dominate thermal effects in determining core stratification, and that the diffusive density profile is unstable throughout the outer core except for a layer 70 km deep adjacent to the mantle-core boundary. Such a result implies that convection fills the entire outer core with the possible exception of a thin layer below the mantle-core boundary.

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