Linear and nonlinear Rayleigh-Benard-Marangoni instability with surface deformations

Thermoconvective instabilities in a bilayer liquid-gas system with a deformed interface are investigated. In the first part of the work which is devoted to a linear approach, emphasis is put on the role of the upper gas layer on the instability phenomenon. The condition to be satisfied by the gas to remain purely conductive is established. The so-called Oberbeck-Boussinesq approximation is discussed and its range of validity is carefully defined. Instead of the classical Rayleigh, Marangoni, crispation, and Galileo numbers, new dimensionless groups are introduced. A critical comparison with several previous works is made. The nonlinear analysis consists in studying the different convective patterns which can appear above the threshold. Particular attention is devoted to the shape of the interface and the so-called "hybrid" relief. The amplitude of the deformation is also determined and comparison with experimental data is discussed. (C) 2000 American Institute of Physics. [S1070-6631(00)00911-9].