Particle settling through a diffusive-type thermohaline staircase in the ocean

Particle-settling through a diffusive-type thermohaline system in the ocean is studied. Results show that the number of suspended particles in a convecting layer decreases exponentially with time, with a decay rate equal to the quotient of the settling velocity and layer depth. The rate of sedimentation also approaches the rate in a non-convecting fluid as the number of layers in the staircase increase.