ROW: A Finite Element Study of Mantle Plumes

随着最近计算能力的进步和算法的改进，现在可以模拟地幔中固态对流的详细特征。提出的项目包括对地幔上涌热柱的几个方面的研究。已经开发了一个完全矢量化的生产有限元代码来模拟球形轴对称壳体中的对流。该项目的一部分内容包括参与球壳地幔对流数值模型的广泛基准测试。该代码还将进一步发展，以模拟核心-地幔边界的演变及其对地幔柱的影响。此外，还将研究温度随流变性和球性对球壳热羽流结构的影响。

With recent advances in computing power and improved algorithms, it is now possible to model detailed features of solid- state convection in the Earth's mantle. The proposed project consists of s study of several aspects of upwelling thermal plumes in the mantle. A fully-vectorized, production finite-element code has been developed to model convection in a spherical, axisymmetric shell. Part of this project involves participating in an extensive benchmark of numerical models of mantle convection in spherical shells. The code will also be further developed to model the evolution of the core-mantle boundary and its effect on mantle plumes. In addition, the effects of temperature-dependent rheology and sphericity on the structure of thermal plumes in a spherical shell will be studied.