Numerical experiments on salt-finger convection

Salt-finger convection is now widely recognized as an important mechanism for mixing heat and salt, both vertically and laterally in the ocean. This article reviews numerical simulations of salt-finger. Salt-fingers were first produced in the laboratory in the mid-1960s, when their structure and transport mechanisms were partially described. However, rapid diffusion of heat in the laboratory frustrates exact or conclusive understanding of many aspects of salt-fingers. Numerical simulation of salt-finger began in the 1980s. The rapid development of computational technology has brought great improvements in our understanding of salt-fingers. However, fully 3-D simulations that resolve all the scales present in salt-fingering, particularly in an oceanic environment where internal waves and turbulence are confounding influences, pose many more challenges for the future.