The impact of turbulent mixing on the galactic r-process enrichment by
  binary neutron star mergers
  We study the enrichment of the interstellar medium with rapid neutron capture
(r-process) elements produced in binary neutron star (BNS) mergers. We use a
semi-analytic model to describe galactic evolution, with merger rates and time
delay distributions of BNS mergers consistent with the latest population
synthesis models. In order to study the dispersion of the relative abundances
of r-process elements and iron, we applied a turbulent mixing scheme, where the
freshly synthesized elements are gradually dispersed in the interstellar
medium. We show that within our model the abundances observed in Milky-Way
stars, in particular the scatter at low metallicities, can be entirely
explained by BNS mergers. Our results suggest that binary neutron star mergers
could be the dominant source of r-process elements in the Galaxy.
