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Transport of Energy by Convection

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Stellar Structure and Evolution

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Abstract

Convective transport of energy means an exchange of energy between hotter and cooler layers in a dynamically unstable region through the exchange of macroscopic mass elements, the hotter of which move upwards while the cooler ones descend. The moving mass elements will finally dissolve in their new surroundings and thereby deliver their excess (or deficiency) of heat. Owing to the high density in stellar interiors, convective transport can be very efficient. A thorough theoretical treatment of convective motions and transport of energy is extremely difficult. In this chapter the Mixing Length Theory will be introduced, which is the standard way to deal with convection in stellar models.

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© 2012 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

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Kippenhahn, R., Weigert, A., Weiss, A. (2012). Transport of Energy by Convection. In: Stellar Structure and Evolution. Astronomy and Astrophysics Library. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-30304-3_7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-30304-3_7

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-642-30255-8

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-642-30304-3

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