Flow of Three-Phase mixtures
Lavas and magmas are made of a mixture of molten rock, crystals of different sizes, and gas bubbles. This makes magmas and lavas complex fluids, that behave in different ways depending, for instance, on the fraction each of these components take.
We investigate the flow of three-phase magmas on a range of length scales:
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Small-scale interactions such as the influence of crystals on bubble nucleation and coalescence are studied using novel microscopy and experimental techniques (led by postdoc Julie Oppenheimer) and analysis of natural samples through 3D x-ray micro-tomography.
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Large-scale effects are studied using lab experiments using a range of mixtures and slurries, numerical models, and field observations (led by graduate student Janine Birnbaum)
Time-lapses of a three-dimensional scan of a three-phase mixture containing particles (small bright yellow beads in the left side color images), and bubbles. Arrow points to a moving bubble.
We use dam-break experiments to observe the flow of multiphase suspensions and evaluate their rheology. To see better inside the flows, we conduct the experiments inside an MRI machine!
