Analysis of Laminar Flow and Forced Convection Heat Transfer in a Porous Medium

The flow of an incompressible Newtonian fluid confined in a planar geometry with different wall temperatures filled with a homogenous and isotropic porous medium is analyzed in terms of determining the unsteady state and steady state velocities, the temperature and the entropy generation rate as function of the pressure drop, the Darcy number, and the Brinkman number. The one-dimensional approximate equation in the rectangular Cartesian coordinates governing the flow of a Newtonian fluid through porous medium is derived by accounting for the order of magnitude of terms as well as accompanying approximations to the full-blown three-dimensional equations by using scaling arguments. The one-dimensional approximate energy and the entropy equations with the viscous dissipation consisting of the velocity gradient and the square of velocity are derived by following the same procedure used in the derivation of velocity expressions. The one-dimensional approximate equations for the velocity, the temperature, and the entropy generation rate are analytically solved to determine the velocity, the temperature, and the entropy distributions in the saturated porous medium as functions of the effective process parameters. It is found that the pressure drop, the Darcy number, and the Brinkman number affect the temperature distribution in the similar way, and besides the above parameters, the irreversibility distribution ratio also affects the entropy generation rate in the similar way.     

Optimization of Forced Convection Heat Transfer in a Composite Porous Medium Channel

The optimization of heat transfer for forced convection in a composite porous channel was studied. We investigated the question where should one place, in the core or in the sheath, the material with high permeability and high-thermal conductivity and where should one place the material with low permeability and low-thermal conductivity, to maximize heat transfer from the walls. We also investigated the optimal heat transfer situation when one has the freedom to vary the relative volumes of the core and the sheath.     

Thermodynamically Consistent Limiting Forced Convection Heat Transfer in a Asymmetrically Heated Porous Channel: An Analytical Study

Fluid transport and the associated heat transfer through porous media is of immense importance because of its numerous practical applications. In view of the widespread applications of porous media flow, the present study attempts to investigate the forced convective heat transfer in the limiting condition for the flow through porous channel. There could be many areas, where heat transfer through porous channel attain some limiting conditions, thus, the analysis of limiting convective heat transfer is far reaching. The primary aim of the present study is focused on the limiting forced convection analysis considering the flow of Newtonian fluid between two asymmetrically heated parallel plates filled with saturated porous media. Utilizing a few assumptions, which are usually employed in the literature, an analytical methodology is executed to obtain the closed-form expression of the temperature profile, and in the following the expression of the limiting Nusselt numbers. The parametric variations of the temperature profile and the Nusselt numbers in different cases have been shown highlighting the influential role of different performance indexing parameters, like Darcy number, porosity of the media, and Brinkman number of forced convective heat transfer in porous channel. In doing so, the underlying physics of the transport characteristics of heat has been delineated in a comprehensive way. Moreover, a discussion has been made regarding an important feature like the onset of point of singularity as appeared on the variation of the Nusselt number from the consideration of energy balance in the flow field, and in view of second law of thermodynamics.     

Forced Convection Heat Transfer of Nanofluids in a Porous Channel

This article is concerned with the effects of flow and migration of nanoparticles on heat transfer in a straight channel occupied with a porous medium. Investigation of force convective heat transfer of nanofluids in a porous channel has not been considered completely in the literature and this challenge is generally considered to be an open research topic that may require more study. The fully developed flow and steady Darcy?CBrinkman?CForchheimer equation is employed in porous channel. The thermal equilibrium model is assumed between nanofluid and solid phases. It is assumed that the nanoparticles are distributed non-uniformly inside the channel. As a result the volume fraction distribution equation is also coupled with governing equations. The effects of parameters such as Lewis number, Schmidt number, Brownian diffusion, and thermophoresis on the heat transfer are completely studied. The results show that the local Nusselt number is decreased when the Lewis number is increased. It is observed that as the Schmidt number is increased, the wall temperature gradient is decreased and as a consequence the local Nusselt number is decreased. The effects of Lewis number, Schmidt number, and modified diffusivity ratio on the volume fraction distribution are also studied and discussed.     

Note to the Opposing Flow Regime at Mixed Convection Around a Heated Cylinder in a Porous Medium

Transport in Porous Media -     

Free Convection Heat Transfer over a Vertical Cylinder in a Saturated Porous Medium Using a Local Thermal Non-equilibrium Model

In this article, free convection heat transfer over a vertical cylinder with variable surface temperature distributions in a porous medium is analyzed. It is assumed that the fluid and solid phases are not in local thermal equilibrium and, therefore, a two-temperature model of heat transfer is applied. The coupled momentum and energy equations are presented and then they are transformed into ordinary differential equations. The similarity equations are solved numerically. The resulting velocity, streamlines, temperature distributions for fluid and solid phases are shown for different values of parameters entering into the problem. The calculated values of the local Nusselt numbers for both solid and fluid phases are also shown.     

Analytical Study of Fluid Flow and Heat Transfer during Forced Convection in a Composite Channel Partly Filled with a Brinkman–Forchheimer Porous Medium

In this paper, the problem of fully developed forced convection in a parallel-plate channel partly filled with a homogeneous porous material is considered. The porous material is attached to the walls of the channel, while the center of the channel is occupied by clear fluid. The flow in the porous material is described by a nonlinear Brinkman–Forchheimer-extended Darcy equation. Utilizing the boundary-layer approach, analytical solutions for the flow velocity, the temperature distribution, as well as for the Nusselt number are obtained. Dependence of the Nusselt number on several parameters of the problem is extensively investigated.     

Fully Developed Forced Convection Heat Transfer in a Porous Channel with Asymmetric Heat Flux Boundary Conditions

An analytical study is performed on steady, laminar, and fully developed forced convection heat transfer in a parallel plate channel with asymmetric uniform heat flux boundary conditions. The channel is filled with a saturated porous medium, and the lower and upper walls are subjected to different uniform heat fluxes. The dimensionless form of the Darcy–Brinkman momentum equation is solved to determine the dimensionless velocity profile, while the dimensionless energy equation is solved to obtain temperature profile for a hydrodynamically and thermally fully developed flow in the channel. Nusselt numbers for the lower and upper walls and an overall Nusselt number are defined. Analytical expressions for determination of the Nusselt numbers and critical heat flux ratio, at which singularities are observed for individual Nusselt numbers, are obtained. Based on the values of critical heat flux ratio and Darcy number, a diagram is provided to determine the direction of heat transfer between the lower or upper walls while the fluid is flowing in the channel.     

On the Hydrodynamics and Heat Convection of an Impinging External Flow Upon a Cylinder with Transpiration and Embedded in a Porous Medium

This paper extends the existing studies of heat convection by an external flow impinging upon a flat porous insert to that on a circular cylinder inside a porous medium. The surface of the cylinder is subject to constant temperature and can include uniform or non-uniform transpiration. These cylindrical configurations are introduced in the analyses of stagnation-point flows in porous media for the first time. The equations governing steady transport of momentum and thermal energy in porous media are reduced to simpler nonlinear differential equations and subsequently solved numerically. This reveals the dimensionless velocity and temperature fields of the stagnation-point flow, as well as the Nusselt number and shear stress on the surface of the cylinder. The results show that transpiration on the surface of the cylinder and Reynolds number of the external flow dominate the fluid dynamics and heat transfer problems. In particular, non-uniform transpiration is shown to significantly affect the thermal and hydrodynamic responses of the system in the circumferential direction. However, the permeability and porosity of the porous medium are found to have relatively smaller influences.     

Numerical Simulation of Forced Convective Heat Transfer Past a Square Diamond-Shaped Porous Cylinder

Fluid flow and heat transfer around and through a porous cylinder is an important issue in engineering applications. In this paper a numerical study is carried out for simulating the fluid flow and forced convection heat transfer around and through a square diamond-shaped porous cylinder. The flow is two-dimensional, steady, and laminar. Conservation laws of mass, momentum, and heat transport equations are applied in the clear region and Darcy–Brinkman–Forchheimer model for simulating the flow in the porous medium has been used. Equations with the relevant boundary conditions are numerically solved using a finite volume approach. In this study, Reynolds and Darcy numbers are varied within the ranges of $1<Re<45$ and $10^{-6}<Da<10^{- 2}$ , respectively. The porosity $(\varepsilon )$ is 0.5. This paper presents the effect of Reynolds and Darcy numbers on the flow structure and heat transfer characteristics. Finally, these parameters are compared among solid and porous cylinder. It was found that the drag coefficient decreases and flow separation from the cylinder is delayed with increasing Darcy number. Also the size of the thermal plume decreases by decreasing Darcy number.     

Forced Convection Flow of Power-Law Fluids Over a Flat Plate Embedded in a Darcy-Brinkman Porous Medium

The steady forced convection flow of a power-law fluid over a horizontal plate embedded in a saturated Darcy-Brinkman porous medium is considered. The flow is driven by a constant pressure gradient. In addition to the convective inertia, also the “porous Forchheimer inertia” effects are taken into account. The pertinent boundary value problem is investigated analytically, as well as numerically by a finite difference method. It is found that far away from the leading edge, the velocity boundary layer always approaches an asymptotic state with identically vanishing transverse component. This holds for pseudoplastic (0 < n < 1), Newtonian (n = 1), and dilatant (n > 1) fluids as well. The asymptotic solution is given for several particular values of the power-law index n in an exact analytical form. The main flow characteristics of physical and engineering interest are discussed in the paper in some detail.     

Forced Convection Heat Transfer on a Flat Plate Embedded in Porous Media for Power-Law Fluids

The effect of the presence of an isotropic solid matrix on the forced convection heat transfer rate from a flat plate to power-law non- Newtonian fluid-saturated porous medium, has been investigated. Numerical results are presented for the distribution of velocity and temperature profiles within the boundary layer. The effects of the flow index, first-order and second-order resistance on the velocity, and temperature profiles are discussed. The missing wall values of the velocity and thermal functions are tabulated.     

Mixed Convection Boundary Layer Flow Past a Horizontal Circular Cylinder Embedded in a Bidisperse Porous Medium

Adopting a two-temperature and two-velocity model, appropriate to a bidisperse porous medium (BDPM) proposed by Nield and Kuznetsov (2008), the classical steady, mixed convection boundary layer flow about a horizontal, isothermal circular cylinder embedded in a porous medium has been theoretically studied in this article. It is shown that the boundary layer analysis leads to expressions for the flow and heat transfer characteristics in terms of an inter-phase momentum parameter, a thermal diffusivity ratio, a thermal conductivity ratio, a permeability ratio, a modified thermal capacity ratio, and a buoyancy or mixed convection parameter. The transformed partial differential equations governing the flow and heat transfer in the f-phase (the macro-pores) and the p-phase (the remainder of the structure) are solved numerically using a very efficient implicit finite-difference technique known as Keller-box method. A good agreement is observed between the present results and those known from the open literature in the special case of a traditional Darcy formulation (monodisperse system).     

Mixed Convection Boundary Layer Flow from a Horizontal Circular Cylinder Embedded in a Porous Medium Filled with a Nanofluid

Steady mixed convection boundary layer flow from an isothermal horizontal circular cylinder embedded in a porous medium filled with a nanofluid has been studied for both cases of a heated and cooled cylinder. The resulting system of nonlinear partial differential equations is solved numerically using an implicit finite-difference scheme. The solutions for the flow and heat transfer characteristics are evaluated numerically for various values of the governing parameters, namely the nanoparticle volume fraction φ and the mixed convection parameter λ. Three different types of nanoparticles are considered, namely Cu, Al₂O₃ and TiO₂. It is found that for each particular nanoparticle, as the nanoparticle volume fraction φ increases, the magnitude of the skin friction coefficient decreases, and this leads to an increase in the value of the mixed convection parameter λ which first produces no separation. On the other hand, it is also found that of all the three types of nanoparticles considered, for any fixed values of φ and λ, the nanoparticle Cu gives the largest values of the skin friction coefficient followed by TiO₂ and Al₂O₃. Finally, it is worth mentioning that heating the cylinder (λ > 0) delays separation of the boundary layer and if the cylinder is hot enough (large values of λ > 0), then it is suppressed completely. On the other hand, cooling the cylinder (λ < 0) brings the boundary layer separation point nearer to the lower stagnation point and for a sufficiently cold cylinder (large values of λ < 0) there will not be a boundary layer on the cylinder.     

Non-Darcian Forced Convection Flow of Viscous Dissipating Fluid over a Flat Plate Embedded in a Porous Medium

In this study, laminar boundary layer flow over a flat plate embedded in a fluid-saturated porous medium in the presence of viscous dissipation, inertia effect and suction/injection is analyzed using the Keller box finite difference method. The flat plate is assumed to be held at constant temperature. The non-Darcian effects of convection, boundary and inertia are considered. Results for the local heat transfer parameter and the local skin friction parameter as well as the velocity and temperature profiles are presented for various values of the governing parameters. The non-Darcian effects are shown to decrease the velocity and to increase the temperature. It is also shown that the local heat transfer parameter and the local skin friction parameter increase due to suction of fluid while injection reverses this trend. It is disclosed that the effect of the viscous dissipation for negative values of Ec (T _w < T _∞) is to enhance the heat transfer coefficient while the opposite is true for positive values of Ec (T _w > T _∞). The results are compared with those available in the existing literature and an excellent agreement is obtained.     

Mixed Convection in Non-Newtonian Fluids Along an Isothermal Vertical Cylinder in a Porous Medium

Mixed convection in power-law type non-Newtonian fluids along an isothermal vertical cylinder in porous media is studied. The problem is solved by means of a finite difference method for the case of uniform wall temperature. Results for the details of the velocity and temperature fields as well as the Nusselt number have been presented. The viscosity index ranged from 0.5–1.5.     

Mixed Convection Boundary-Layer Flow Along a Vertical Cylinder Embedded in a Porous Medium Filled by a Nanofluid

The steady mixed convection boundary-layer flow on a vertical circular cylinder embedded in a porous medium filled by a nanofluid is studied for both cases of a heated and a cooled cylinder. The governing system of partial differential equations is reduced to ordinary differential equations by assuming that the surface temperature of the cylinder and the velocity of the external (inviscid) flow vary linearly with the axial distance x measured from the leading edge. Solutions of the resulting ordinary differential equations for the flow and heat transfer characteristics are evaluated numerically for various values of the governing parameters, namely the nanoparticle volume fraction ${\phi}$ , the mixed convection or buoyancy parameter ?? and the curvature parameter ??. Results are presented for the specific case of copper nanoparticles. A critical value ?? _c of ?? with ?? _c <?0 is found, with the values of | ?? _c| increasing as the curvature parameter ?? or nanoparticle volume fraction ${\phi}$ is increased. Dual solutions are seen for all values of ?? >??? _c for both aiding, ?? >?0 and opposing, ?? <?0, flows. Asymptotic solutions are also determined for both the free convection limit ${(\lambda \gg 1)}$ and for large curvature parameter ${(\gamma \gg 1)}$ .     

Effect of an Inserted Porous Layer Located at a Wall of a Parallel Plate Channel on Forced Convection Heat Transfer

A theoretical study is performed on heat and fluid flow in partially porous medium filled parallel plate channel. A uniform symmetrical heat flux is imposed onto the boundaries of the channel partially filled with porous medium. The dimensional forms of the governing equations are solved numerically for different permeability and effective thermal conductivity ratios. Then, the governing equations are made dimensionless and solved analytically. The results of two approaches are compared and an excellent agreement is observed, indicating correctness of the both solutions. An overall Nusselt number is defined based on overall thermal conductivity and difference between the average temperature of walls and mean temperature to compare heat transfer in different channels with different porous layer thickness, Darcy number, and thermal conductivity ratio. Moreover, individual Nusselt numbers for upper and lower walls are also defined and obtained. The obtained results show that the maximum overall Nusselt number is achieved for thermal conductivity ratio of 1. At specific values of Darcy number and thermal conductivity ratio, individual Nusselt numbers approach to infinity since the value of wall temperatures approaches to mean temperature.     

A Two-Velocity Two-Temperature Model for a Bi-Dispersed Porous Medium: Forced Convection in a Channel

A two-velocity two-temperature model for bi-dispersed porous media is formulated. Using the model, an analytic solution is obtained for the problem of forced convection in a channel between parallel plane walls that are held either at uniform temperature or uniform heat flux. In each case, Nusselt number values are given as functions of a conductivity ratio, a velocity ratio, a volume fraction, and an internal heat exchange parameter.