UBC Mathematics Colloquium
Andrej Zlatos
(University of Chicago)
Reaction and Diffusion in Fluid Flow
Fri., Jan. 29, 2010, 3:00pm, MATX 1100
Abstract:
Reaction-diffusion equations are parabolic partial differential
equations used in the modeling of phenomena such as propagation of
species in an environment or spreading of flames in combustible media.
Their general solutions exhibit two basic behaviors, extinction
(quenching) and spreading. In this talk we will review recent progress
in our understanding of how the motion of the underlying medium,
modelled by a fluid flow, affects both the occurence of quenching and
the speed of spreading of reaction. The problem turns out to have
fruitful connections to questions about mixing effixiency of flows and
homogenization of advection-diffusion operators.