Directional solidification

Directional solidification advances a freezing region preferentially along an imposed temperature gradient. Pulling material through fixed heat exchangers can make the mushy layer stationary in the apparatus frame even while solid and liquid pass through it.

If the solid skeleton translates with velocity $-V{\mathbf{e}}_z$ and the fully solid material has density ${\rho }_s$, steady mass conservation fixes Darcy flux toThe liquid's laboratory velocity is therefore ${\mathbf{v}}_l=-rV{\mathbf{e}}_z$ wherever liquid exists. This upward relative flux for $r<1$ supplies the expansion needed when liquid becomes a less dense solid.

With pure solid crystals, negligible solute diffusion, and the density-change flow in a pulled mushy layer, steady solute balance gives $(1-\phi )C=C_0$. If $\theta =(T-T_0)/\Delta T$, $\mathcal{C}=m{C}_0/\Delta T$, and the liquidus is $T-T_0=-m(C-C_0)$, then

For $\mathcal{C}\gg 1$ and latent-to-sensible heat ratio $S\gg 1$ with $S/\mathcal{C}=O(1)$, put $\Omega =1+S/(r\mathcal{C})$, $\zeta =Vz/\kappa$, and $H=Vh/\kappa$. The steady heat equation becomes ${\theta }^{\prime \prime }+r\Omega {\theta }^{\prime }=0$ in the mush and ${\theta }^{\prime \prime }+r{\theta }^{\prime }=0$ in the liquid. Matching temperature and heat flux at $\zeta =H$, with $\theta (0)=-1$ and liquid temperature ${\theta }_{\infty }>0$ far above, givesThe latent heat modifies the mush's effective thermal decay rate and therefore its thickness.