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Experimental Study of Dissolution Patterns under the Action of Turbulent Water Flow: Competition between Forced and Solutal Convection
Michael Berhanu  1@  , Augustin Maller  2@  , Martin Chaigne  3@  , Mathieu Receveur  4@  , Sabrina Carpy  5@  , Marion Masse  6@  , Sylvain Courrech Du Pont  2, 7@  
1 : Laboratoire Matière et Systèmes Complexes  (MSC)  -  Site web
CNRS : UMR7057
10 rue A. Domon et L. Duquet 75013 Paris -  France
2 : Laboratoire Matière et Systèmes Complexes
CNRS : UMR7057
3 : Institut de Physique du Globe de Paris  (IPG Paris)
Université Paris Cité, CNRS
1 rue Jussieu, 75005 Paris -  France
4 : Matière et Systèmes Complexes
Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Université Paris Cité
5 : Laboratoire de Planétologie et Géodynamique de Nantes  (LPGN)
CNRS : UMR6112, INSU, Université de Nantes
2 Rue de la Houssinière - BP 92208 44322 NANTES CEDEX 3 -  France
6 : Laboratoire de Planétologie et Géosciences
CNRS : UMR6112
7 : Laboratoire Matière et Systèmes Complexes
Université de Paris, CNRS : UMR7057

Landscapes on Earth's surface are shaped by erosion, whether mechanical or chemical. For instance, chemical erosion, or more specifically, erosion by dissolution, is the main mechanism for the erosion of limestone or gypsum. During this process, topography, flow, and solute transport interact to generate regular patterns whose size and shape are believed to reflect past hydrodynamic conditions. Recently, we discovered that the scallop patterns on some walls of the Saint Marcel cave in Ardèche are oriented differently than the cave conduit, suggesting a possible influence of gravity on pattern formation. Dissolution creates density gradients that generate solutal convection flows under the influence of gravity. External flow also affects the local dissolution rate by shearing the solute boundary layer. Consequently, we investigate the formation of dissolution patterns under the action of turbulent water flow in the laboratory using salt and gypsum plates. Specifically, we characterize the dissolution rate and pattern orientation depending on plate inclination relative to vertical and the strength of the imposed flow. In experiments with fast-dissolving materials, we effectively demonstrate that dissolution pattern shapes and directions are clearly affected by the competition between forced and solutal convection.


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