Related papers: Accretion disc viscosity: how big is alpha?
We use well-established observational evidence to draw conclusions about the fundamental nature of the viscosity in accretion discs. To do this, we first summarise the observational evidence for the value of the dimensionless accretion disc…
We estimate a value of the viscosity parameter in AGN accretion discs for the PG quasar sample. We assume that optical variability on time-scales of months to years is caused by local instabilities in the inner accretion disc. Comparing the…
In the standard thin disc formalism the dimensionless $\alpha$ parameter is usually assumed to be constant. However, there are good theoretical reasons for believing, as well as evidence from simulations, that $\alpha$ is dependent on…
The $\alpha$ turbulent viscosity formalism for accretion discs must be interpreted as a mean field theory. The extent to which the disc scale exceeds that of the turbulence determines the precision of the predicted luminosity $L_\nu$. The…
We report the results of a systematic comparison between the vertically averaged model and the vertically explicit model of steady state, Keplerian, optically thick "alpha"-discs. The simulations have concerned discs currently found in…
In this short paper we show that making turbulence two- rather than three-dimensional may increase effective turbulent viscosity by about 40%. Dimensionless hydrodynamical viscosity parameter up to \alpha\_{max} = 0.25 M_t^2 may be obtained…
Almost all hydrodynamic accretion disk models parametrize viscosity with the dimensionless parameter alpha. There is no detailed model for alpha, so it is usually taken to be a constant. However, global simulations of magnetohydrodynamic…
We show that the standard model for geometrically thin accretion disks (alpha-disks) leads to inconsistencies if selfgravity plays a role. This problem arises from the parametrization of viscosity in terms of local sound velocity and…
We examine the effects of the different viscosity prescriptions and the magnitude of the viscosity parameter, $\alpha$, on the structure of the slim disk, and discuss the observational implications on accretion-flow into a stellar-mass…
Numerical, two-dimensional, time-dependent hydrodynamical models of geometrically thick accretion discs around black holes are presented. Accretion flows with non-effective radiation cooling (ADAFs) can be both convectively stable or…
The physical mechanisms driving angular momentum transport in accretion discs are still unknown. Although it is generally accepted that, in hot discs, the turbulence triggered by the magneto-rotational instability is at the origin of the…
In this paper I review and discuss the basic concepts of accretion disks, focused especially on the case of accretion disks around black holes. The well known alpha-model is revisited, showing the strengths and weaknesses of the model.…
Standard, planar accretion discs operate through a dissipative mechanism, usually thought to be turbulent, and often modelled as a viscosity. This acts to take energy from the radial shear, enabling the flow of mass and angular momentum in…
Two-dimensional accretion flows near black holes have been investigated by time-dependent hydrodynamical calculations. We assume that the flow is axisymmetric and that radiative losses of internal energy are negligible, so that the disc is…
The structure of the boundary layer region between the disc and a comparatively slowly rotating star is studied using a causal prescription for viscosity. The vertically integrated viscous stress relaxes towards its equilibrium value on a…
The viscous evolution of a thin disc around a central object is considered. Such discs are described by self-similar solutions in which either all or none of the inflowing mass accretes. An approximate solution for the partial accretion…
The manner in which warps in accretion disks evolve depends on the magnitude of the viscosity. For small viscosity $(\alpha < H/R)$ the warp evolves in a wave-like manner; for large viscosity $H/R<\alpha \ll 1$ it evolves diffusively. Here…
We are carrying out a programme of non-linear time-dependent numerical calculations to study the evolution of the thermal instability driven by radiation pressure in transonic accretion discs around black holes. In our previous studies we…
Accretion disc theory was first developed as a theory with the local heat balance, where the whole energy produced by a viscous heating was emitted to the sides of the disc. One of the most important new invention of this theory was a…
The effects of binary tidal forces on transport within an accretion disk are studied with a time-dependent hydrodynamical model of a two-dimensional isothermal accretion disk. Tidal forces quickly truncate the accretion disk to radii of…