Natural convection in horizontal containers with applications to crystal growth.

This paper reviews the recent developments in research concerned with natural convection in enclosures due to horizontal temperature gradients. Emphasis is placed on finite aspect ratio enclosures since the end walls can have a profound influence on the overall flow structure. When the Rayleigh number is large, flows of this type may involve thin shear layers adjacent to the rigid boundaries. However, as the aspect ratio increases the thickness of the horizontal layers grows and ultimately can fill the enclosure.