Assume a column is sealed to salt at both ends, diffusion occurs only in liquid, and its imposed temperature increases strictly upward. A finite-width equilibrium mushy layer cannot be stationary: its solute flux is nonzero unless its liquid fraction vanishes. The final state is pure ice below a height and uniform-composition brine above it. Their interface obeys . The displayed mass conservation equation fixes from the initial salt content. For a diffusive steadily pulled equilibrium mush, let , , and . The initial salt content is . Thus the liquid-cap depth obeys , which has one positive root. This conclusion assumes no subsequent exchange with an underlying eutectic reservoir.

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