Axisymmetric study of convection in rotating annulus in the presence of localized heating

We present two dimensional (2D) axisymmetric simulations to model a rotating convective system driven by localized heating. The system consists of a cylindrical annulus with peripheral spot heating along the outer edge of the bottom surface and uniform cooling on the inner edge. This setup naturally introduces an additional vertical thermal gradient near the outer edge of the annulus, along with a radial thermal gradient, thereby simulating the thermal gradient patterns observed in a real atmosphere. While the 2D axisymmetric simulation does not fully capture the three dimensional (3D) behavior of flow dynamics, however, it aids in understanding the flow dynamics in the absence of baroclinic instability, as well as the local flow structures near the heating zone, cold wall, and Ekman layers. We investigate the variability in convective dynamics in response to varying Taylor number (Ta) and Rayleigh number (Ra) within the parameter range of Ra=2.4×107 to 1.2×109 and Ta=1.6×107 to 1.2×109 along with Ta = 0. The convection is confined within narrow boundary layers, and diffusion dominates the fluid interior. At zero rotation rate, isotherms are horizontal. Rotation causes the spreading of the isotherms due to a combination of quasi-hydrostatic and geostrophic balance in the interior of the flow domain. Theoretical scalings for local Nusselt numbers are derived and validated with results from the simulations. The overall Nusselt number, Nu, appears to strongly depend on Ra. The impact of Ta on Nu is rather limited unless Ekman boundary layer is less than the rotating thermal boundary layer.