Stability of cylindrical Couette flow of a radially polarised dielectric liquid in a radial temperature gradient (Q1330321)

A linear stability analysis is used to predict the onset of convective instability in an annulus of a pure dielectric liquid between two long coaxial cylinders. The liquid experiences a radial temperature gradient and a strong radial \(ac\) electric field. When the two cylinders are stationary, our analysis gives reasonable agreement with experiment data on silicone oils. If the central cylinder is warmer and is allowed to rotate, the stability of the Couette flow is predicted to vary with the temperature difference between the cylinders in a manner that depends markedly on the gap to radius ratio.