Significance of melting heat transfer in bio-convective thixotropic nanofluid

Abstract

This work studies bio-convective thixotropic nanomaterial flow due to stretchable surface. Importances of bio-convection and melting impact are examined. Nanofluid significance through thermophoresis and Brownian diffusion is considered. Radiation, magnetic field and Joule heating effects are assumed present. Dimensionless variables are used to transform related expressions into ordinary differential system (ODEs). To gain convergent series solutions the homotopy analysis method (HAM) is utilized and solutions convergence discussed. Graphical results illustrating influences of melting parameter, Prandtl number, bio-convection Lewis number, radiation parameter, Dufour number, Soret number, Peclet number, Brownian motion parameter and various other emerging variables are presented. Here microorganism field is observed to be a decreasing function of bio-convection Lewis number. Velocity is an increasing function of melting parameter. Higher Dufour number result in temperature reduction while higher Soret number reduce concentration. Main results of current analysis are listed in conclusion section.

Keywords

• Bio-convection
• Nanofluid
• Melting process
• Dufour and Soret effects
• Joule heating and thermal radiation