Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2019 iii Paper 321 1 c Solution Created 2026-10-03 Updated 2026-10-05
Here is the radiation-to-gas pressure ratio, not plasma beta. Write the opacity as to distinguish it from the radial epicyclic frequency. The radiation pressure is , so radiative diffusion can be written asSince is independent of height, . Substitution of hydrostatic equilibrium, , givesDifferentiating and using the viscous heating equation, together with , yieldsThus the effective dynamic viscosity is independent of height. If the surfaces are at , the vertically integrated kinematic viscosity satisfiesUse the previous result and the specified Eddington accretion rate convention,to obtain the full thicknessThe constant-pressure-ratio vertical disk model therefore has thickness proportional to the inward accretion rate. This is a full surface-to-surface thickness, rather than a density disk scale height. Its use as a thin disk requires .
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2020 ii Paper 3 38B a Solution Created 2026-09-24 Updated 2026-09-29
Choose tangential to the solid boundary and locally along the outer inviscid streamlines, and let be the inward normal coordinate. Write and for the corresponding tangential and normal velocity field components, for the outer tangential velocity, and for the kinematic viscosity.
For a layer of streamwise scale and thickness , incompressible flow givesso and . The normal Navier-Stokes equation then gives to leading order, while the outer Euler equations giveIn the tangential Navier-Stokes equation, streamwise viscous diffusion is smaller than normal diffusion by . Retaining the leading inertial and normal-diffusion terms produces the Prandtl boundary-layer equationIt is supplemented by at a stationary wall and on matching to the outer flow.
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2022 iii Paper 321 1 b i Solution 2026-09-28
For a perfect gas, . At the margin of the Toomre stability criterion,Integrating viscous heating through the disk and applying radiative diffusion givesEquating these fluxes yieldsThe kinematic viscosity is , soBecause a Keplerian accretion disk has ,
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2024 iii Paper 332 2 iii Solution 2026-09-28
Setso . Apart from material constants, the heat flux in part ii isThe derivative of its logarithm vanishes whenwhich gives the maximizing interface temperatureSubstitution into the flux law giveswhereThus the proportionality coefficient depends on the thermal conductivity, nonlinear thermal-expansion coefficient , kinematic viscosity, thermal diffusivity, gravity, and critical Rayleigh number. This is the maximum-flux law for penetrative convection in an ice-covered lake.
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2024 iii Paper 332 2 ii Solution 2026-09-28
Let be the thickness of the thermal boundary layer immediately below , let be the kinematic viscosity, let be the thermal diffusivity, and let be the critical local Rayleigh number. The density contrast driving the boundary layer follows from the density anomaly of water:A Local Rayleigh-number closure setsand thereforeBy Fourier's law, the upward heat flux through this layer iswhere is the water's thermal conductivity. This expression applies while the quantity inside braces is positive.
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2024 iii Paper 345 2 a Solution 2026-09-28
Write the density as a hydrostatic reference profile plus a small perturbation , and define buoyancy and buoyancy frequency byThe Boussinesq approximation to the Navier-Stokes equation, together with mass conservation, iswhere is the material derivative, is kinematic viscosity, and is mass diffusivity. Linearizing about rest and eliminating pressure and buoyancy givesFor a plane wave proportional to , with , the viscous-diffusive dispersion relation isIn the inviscid limit this becomesFor weak diffusion the two oscillatory roots areso a freely evolving Fourier mode decays.
A single plane wave is also an exact solution of the nonlinear equations. Every field depends only on its phase , while incompressible flow gives . Therefore annihilates both and , and all nonlinear advection terms vanish.
For a boundary-forced wave with real , nonzero or instead makes the bulk vertical wavenumber complex, attenuating the propagating beam. Because diffusion raises the spatial order of the equations, additional short vertical-wavenumber roots form viscous and scalar boundary layers; they allow a no-slip velocity condition and a scalar no-flux condition to accompany impermeability. These layers and bulk attenuation become essential near critical internal-wave reflection, where the inviscid reflected wavelength collapses.
For a face of signed slope , conservation of frequency and tangential wavenumber gives, on the branch relevant to an incident downward-right ray,At , the reflected wavenumber diverges and the reflected group velocity becomes tangent to the face. On a supercritical face the denominator changes sign: horizontal propagation reverses and rays from the two faces are directed towards a sawtooth corner. Successive reflections therefore focus energy and shorten the wavelength.
The inviscid ray pattern cannot persist indefinitely. Near-critical focusing amplifies gradients until kinematic viscosity, mass diffusivity, nonlinear wave steepening, and wave breaking matter; a real corner is also rounded on some finite scale. These effects replace the singular ray construction by dissipative boundary layers, mixing, and a finite-width reflected beam.
Prandtl boundary-layer equation Created 2026-09-29 Updated 2026-10-03
For a steady two-dimensional incompressible boundary layer with tangential velocity , normal velocity , outer tangential velocity , and kinematic viscosity ,The pressure is uniform across the layer, and the outer Euler equation supplies .
Prandtl number 2026-10-06
The Prandtl number is the ratio of kinematic viscosity to thermal diffusivity. It compares the rates at which momentum and temperature variations diffuse. In thermal-diffusion units the Boussinesq equations have momentum inertia multiplied by ; large, rather than small, Prandtl number supplies the usual instantaneous Stokes flow limit.
Square-root-radius diffusion transform 2026-10-07
For a steady zero-mass-flux background and constant viscous transport response exponent, this change removes the first derivative in the radial diffusion operator. If , the kinematic viscosity scales as , so the transformed diffusivity scales as . It is constant at .
With constant kinematic viscosity and zero inner viscous torque in an accretion disk, . For the steady photoevaporating-disk mass flux, the density is inside and the displayed logarithmic profile outside. At equal feeding and wind rates the inner density vanishes, and the outer normalized profile rises from zero with zero slope and tends to one. Its near-edge expansion is .
Surface Ekman layer 2026-10-06
A surface Ekman layer is the stress-driven boundary correction below a rotating fluid’s upper boundary. For upward , , constant kinematic viscosity and imposed complex wind stress , its steady velocity is , . The underlying geostrophic flow is independent of unless an additional boundary velocity condition couples them.
Taylor number 2026-10-06
For a layer rotating at angular speed , of depth and kinematic viscosity , the Taylor number compares the Coriolis force to viscous damping through the squared ratio . Definitions in other geometries may include different geometric factors; this is the plane-layer convention.
Torque-dominated accretion disk 2026-10-05
When the applied inner torque dominates the advective angular-momentum flux, the constant-kinematic viscosity inner profile resembles a decretion disk. This resemblance does not alone imply outward mass transport.
Unbuttressed Newtonian grounding-line stress 2026-10-06
For a two-dimensional Newtonian fluid ice sheet attached to an unbuttressed ice shelf, ice-sheet flotation gives . The difference between the depth-integrated ice and ocean hydrostatic pressures is , where . Shelf force balance integrates to a constant; absence of a buttressing force makes that constant zero. The shallow-shelf approximation therefore gives the displayed boundary condition, or with kinematic viscosity .
For the constant gas-radiation ratio vertical disc structure, the integrated alpha prescription gives the displayed mean kinematic viscosity and . Uniform dynamic viscosity and nonuniform pressure are compatible because this prescription is an integrated equality. Imposing the corresponding pointwise equality would not preserve the exact vertical solution.
Viscous attenuation of an internal-wave beam 2026-09-28
When kinematic viscosity and mass diffusivity are equal to , a monochromatic internal-wave beam with wavenumber and ray angle has leading stream-function amplitudeThe cubic dependence on makes slope-focused, short internal waves dissipate especially rapidly.
Viscous diffusion time Created 2026-09-24 Updated 2026-09-29