Microwave-Based, Internally-Heated Convection: New Perspectives for the Heterogeneous Case

The thermal evolution of telluric planets is primarily controlled by the balance between internal heating - due to radioactive decay - and efficiency of convective heat transfer in their mantle. In the Earth, the problem is particularly complex due to the heterogeneous distribution of heat sources in the mantle and the non-linear coupling between this distribution and convective mixing. To tackle this issue, we have developed a new technology to produce internally-heated convection based on microwaves absorption. This technology has the unique capability to selectively heat different zones of a convective fluid ( heterogeneous convection) through the careful control of the absorption properties of the different fluids. Here we illustrate with two examples the new geophysical perspectives offered by microwave-based internally-heated convection: the problem of lithosphere stability and the evolution of a hidden enriched reservoir in the lowermost mantle.