Numerical simulation of natural convection of electrolyte solution with three types of ions in the electrochemical cell with vertical electrodes

The mass transfer in the electrolyte solution with three types of ions in the electrochemical cell of square section with vertical electrodes is studied. The mathematical model of the process involves the Navier-Stokes equations in the Boussinesq approximation, the equations of ionic transfer of electrolyte components, which is caused by diffusion, convection, and migration, and the condition of electroneutrality. It is shown that this problem corresponds to a special case of thermosolutal convection with regard for thermodiffusion (the Soret effect), where the cell boundaries are permeable to an impurity and the flux of impurity through the boundary is proportional to the heat flux. Using the numerical simulation, the distributions of concentration of ions, solution density, local and average mass-transfer rates are studied. The approximate analytical equations for the limiting current are obtained for typical electrochemical systems.