MHD influence on convective heat transfer in a semi-circular cavity using nonhomogeneous nanofluid model

Abstract

Abatract: A transient free convective heat transfer in a semicircular vicinity occupied with distinct nanofluids has been examined numerically with a periodic magnetic field. The bottom surface of the cavity is heated non-uniformly as parabolic shape whereas the circular surface is kept at constant cold temperature. In the numerical simulation, ZnO, Fe3O4, Co, Al2O3, and Ag have been used as nanoparticles and water and kerosene as the base fluid to investigate the flow regimes and thermal fields developed inside the computed vicinity. Effects of various governing parameters are revealed with depictions of isotherms, streamlines and iso-concentrations. The results show that there is found less computational time to reach a steady-state solution for a higher Rayleigh number and the effects of the periodic magnetic field magnifies the strength of the vortices turning in the cavity. The average heat transfer rate at the bottom surface is uppermost for cobalt-kerosene nanofluid compared to other nine sorts of nanofluids. The results also reveal that the periodic magnetic field as well as the Brownian motion have substantial impacts on the heat transfer rate.

Keywords

• Nanofluids
• Heat transfer
• Periodic magnetic field
• Nonhomogeneous model
• Finite element method (FEM)