Three dimensional simulation of radiation induced convection

Convection induced by the selective absorption of radiation is investigated, where the internal heat source is concentration dependent. Regions of very large subcritical instabilities, i.e. where agreement between the linear instability thresholds and nonlinear stability thresholds is poor, are studied by solving for the full three-dimensional system. The results indicate that linear theory is very accurate in predicting the onset of convective motion, and thus, regions of stability.