Theory of growth by differential sedimentation, with application to snowflake formation

Phys Rev E Stat Nonlin Soft Matter Phys. 2004 Aug;70(2 Pt 1):021403. doi: 10.1103/PhysRevE.70.021403. Epub 2004 Aug 25.

Abstract

A simple model of irreversible aggregation under differential sedimentation of particles in a fluid is presented. The structure of the aggregates produced by this process is found to feed back on the dynamics in such a way as to stabilize both the exponents controlling the growth rate, and the fractal dimension of the clusters produced at readily predictable values. The aggregation of ice crystals to form snowflakes is considered as a potential application of the model.