BENARD-CONVECTION ANALYSIS USING A NEW INTERFEROMETER

A new type of differential interferometer applied to heat and mass tra nsfer analysis of convective flows has been developed. The combination of the classical 'Schlieren' interferometer and the dark field techni que provides, besides the density and temperature profile of the flow field, velocity informations. A simultaneous measurement of temperatur e and velocity data becomes feasible featuring a simple experiment and compact design. This fact makes the device particularly suitable for space experiments. The described device has been applied to investigat e the so-called Benard-convection in a rectangular box. A comparison o f the results with those of the pertinent literature reveals satisfyin g agreement.