Double-Diffusive Natural Convection in Anisotropic Porous Medium Bounded by Finite Thickness Walls: Validity of Local Thermal Equilibrium Assumption

Double-diffusive natural convection in fluid-saturated porous medium inside a vertical enclosure bounded by finite thickness walls with opposing temperature, concentration gradients on vertical walls as well as adiabatic and impermeable horizontal ones has been performed numerically. The Darcy model was used to predict fluid flow inside the porous material, while thermal fields are simulated based on two-energy equations for fluid and solid phases on the basis of a local thermal non-equilibrium model. Computations have been performed for different controlling parameters such as the buoyancy ratio $N$ , the Lewis number Le, the anisotropic permeability ratio $R_\mathrm{p}$ , the fluid-to-solid thermal conductivity ratio $R_\mathrm{c}$ , the interphase heat transfer coefficient $\mathcal{H}$ , the ratio of the wall thickness to its height $D$ , the wall-to-porous medium thermal diffusivity ratio $R_\mathrm{w}$ , and the solid-to-fluid heat capacity ratio $\gamma $ . Thus, the effects of the controlling parameters on heat and mass transfer characteristics are discussed in detail. Moreover, the validity domain of the local thermal equilibrium (LTE) assumption has been delimited for different set of the governing parameters. It has been shown that Le has a noticeable significant effect on fluid temperature profiles and that higher $N$ values lead to a significant enhancement in heat and mass transfer rates. Moreover, for higher $\mathcal{H}, R_\mathrm{c}$ , $R_\mathrm{p}, R_\mathrm{w}$ , or $D$ values and/or lower $\gamma $ values, the solid and fluid phases tend toward LTE.     

Effect of Rotation on Thermal Convection in an Anisotropic Porous Medium with Temperature-dependent Viscosity

A linear stability analysis is performed for mono-diffusive convection in an anisotropic rotating porous medium with temperature-dependent viscosity. The Galerkin variant of the weighted residual technique is used to obtain the eigen value of the problem. The effect of Taylor–Vadasz number and the other parameters of the problem are considered for stationary convection in the absence or presence of rotation. Oscillatory convection seems highly improbable. Some new results on the parameters’ influence on convection in the presence of rotation, for both high and low rotation rates, are presented.     

The Onset of Convection in an Anisotropic Porous Layer Using a Thermal Non-Equilibrium Model

The stability of a horizontal fluid saturated anisotropic porous layer heated from below and cooled from above is examined analytically when the solid and fluid phases are not in local thermal equilibrium. Darcy model with anisotropic permeability is employed to describe the flow and a two-field model is used for energy equation each representing the solid and fluid phases separately. The linear stability theory is implemented to compute the critical Rayleigh number and the corresponding wavenumber for the onset of convective motion. The effect of thermal non-equilibrium and anisotropy in both mechanical and thermal properties of the porous medium on the onset of convection is discussed. Besides, asymptotic analysis for both very small and large values of the interphase heat transfer coefficient is also presented. An excellent agreement is found between the exact and asymptotic solutions. Some known results, which correspond to thermal equilibrium and isotropic porous medium, are recovered in limiting cases.     

Thermal Convection in a Non-darcy Hemispherical Porous Medium

A simple mathematical theory is proposed to investigate the development of the flow field which is the response of a fluid to the buoyancy force due to the existence of a temperature gradient in a hemispherical fluid-saturated porous medium, assuming the validity of the Brinkman model. The induced flow is assumed to be slow, and Stokes approximation is invoked. It is shown, at all times, the induced fluid motion occurs in the form of eddies on either side of the axis of symmetry. In the steady state, the behavior of the fluid motion on the free surface is similar to that of axial fluid flow.     

Onset of Buoyancy-Driven Convection in a Fluid-Saturated Porous Medium Bounded by a Long Cylinder

A theoretical analysis of convective instability driven by buoyancy forces under the transient concentration fields is conducted in an initially quiescent, liquid-saturated, cylindrical porous column. Darcy’s law and Boussinesq approximation are used to explain the characteristics of fluid motion and linear stability theory is employed to predict the onset of buoyancy-driven motion. Under the principle of exchange of stabilities, the stability equations are derived in self-similar boundary-layer coordinate. The present predictions suggest the critical $R_D$ , and the onset time and corresponding wavenumber for a given $R_D$ . The onset time becomes smaller with increasing $R_D$ and follows the asymptotic relation derived in the infinite horizontal porous layer.     

The Onset of Convection in an Anisotropic Heterogeneous Porous Medium: A New Hydrodynamic Boundary Condition

Transport in Porous Media - The Horton–Rogers–Lapwood problem with strong heterogeneity and anisotropy is examined for a simple case, namely where the heterogeneity is provided by two...     

Oil Plume Distribution in an Anisotropic Porous Medium

The saturation distribution—within an anisotropic aquifer—of a pollutant discharging from an underground source is modeled by a two-dimensional, nonlinear diffusion–convection equation. A closed form self-similar solution is obtained for the steady saturation distribution in the immiscible zone. The results may be used to rationalize field data collected for predicting locations of underground leakage sources in aquifers and to understand the influence of the anisotropic permeability’s parameters on the oil distribution in the porous medium. An erratum to this article can be found at     

Centrifugal Acceleration Induced Convection in a Magnetic Fluid Saturated Anisotropic Rotating Porous Medium

A theoretical investigation is made to study the influence of magnetic field on the onset of convection induced by centrifugal acceleration in a magnetic fluid filled porous medium. The layer is assumed to exhibit anisotropy in mechanical as well as thermal sense. Numerical solutions are obtained using the Galerkin method for the eigenvalue problem arising from the linear stability theory. It is found that the magnetic field has a destabilizing effect and can be suitably adjusted depending on the anisotropy parameters to enhance convection. The effect of anisotropies of magnetic fluid filled porous media is shown to be qualitatively different from that of ordinary fluid filled porous media. This phenomenon may be helpful to increase the efficiency of suitable heat transfer devices.     

Three-Dimensional Simulations for Convection Problem in Anisotropic Porous Media with Nonhomogeneous Porosity,Thermal Diffusivity,and Variable Gravity Effects

A convection problem in anisotropic and inhomogeneous porous media has been analyzed. In particular, the effect of variable permeability, thermal diffusivity, and variable gravity with respect to the vertical direction, has been studied. A linear and nonlinear stability analysis of the conduction solution has been performed. The validity of both the linear instability and global nonlinear energy stability thresholds are tested using a three- dimensional simulation. Our results show that the linear threshold accurately predicts on the onset of instability in the basic steady state. However, the required time to arrive at the basic steady state increases significantly as the Rayleigh number tends to the linear threshold.     

Perturbation Analysis of the Local Thermal Non-equilibrium Condition in a Fluid-Saturated Porous Medium Bounded by an Iso-thermal Channel

This study focuses analytically on the local thermal non-equilibrium (LTNE) effects in the developed region of forced convection in a saturated porous medium bounded by isothermal parallel-plates. The flow in the channel is described by the Brinkman–Forchheimer-extended Darcy equation and the LTNE effects are accounted by utilizing the two-equation model. Profiles describing the velocity field obtained by perturbation techniques are used to find the temperature distributions by the successive approximation method. A fundamental relation for the temperature difference between the fluid and solid phases (the LTNE intensity) is established based on a perturbation analysis. It is found that the LTNE intensity ( $\Delta \textit{NE}$ ) is proportional to the product of the normalized velocity and the dimensionless temperature at LTE condition. Also, it depends on the conductivity ratio, Da number, and the porosity of the medium. The intensity of LTNE condition ( $\Delta \textit{NE}$ ) is maximum at the middle of the channel and decreases smoothly to zero by moving to the wall. Finally, the established relation for the intensity of LTNE condition is simple and fundamental for estimating the importance of LTNE condition and validation of numerical simulation results.     

Finite Element Analysis of Convection Flow Through a Porous Medium in a Horizontal Channel

We analyse the convection flow of a viscous fluid through a horizontal channel enclosing a fully saturated porous medium. The Galerkin finite element analysis is used to discuss the flow and heat transfer through the porous medium using serendipity elements. The velocity, the temperature distributions and the rate of heat transfer are analysed for variations in the governing parameters. The profiles at different vertical levels are asymmetric curves, exhibiting reversal flow everywhere except on the midplane. In a given porous medium, for fixed G or N, the temperature in the fluid region at any position in fluids with a higher Prandtl number, is much higher than in fluids with a lower Prandtl number. Likewise, other parameters being fixed, lesser the permeability of the medium, lower the temperature in the flow field. Nu reduces across the flow at all axial positions, while it enhances along the axial direction of the channel. Nu reduces with decrease in the Darcy parameter D, and thus lesser the permeability of the medium, lesser the rate of heat transfer across the boundary at any axial position of the channel.     

Free Convection Heat Transfer From A Sphere In A Porous Medium Using A Thermal Non-equilibrium Model

This work studies the free convection heat transfer from a sphere with constant wall temperature embedded in a fluid-saturated porous medium using a thermal non-equilibrium model. The governing equations are transformed into boundary-layer partial differential equations by the coordinate transform, and the obtained governing equations are then solved by the cubic spline collocation method. The temperature distributions for fluid and solid phases are shown for different values of the porosity scaled thermal conductivity ratio, the interphase heat transfer parameter, and the streamwise coordinate. The effects of the porosity scaled thermal conductivity ratio and the interphase heat transfer parameter between solid and fluid phases on the local Nusselt numbers for fluid and solid phases are examined. Results show the local Nusset number for the porous medium can be increased by increasing the porosity scaled thermal conductivity ratio. Moreover, the thermal non-equilibrium effect is more significant for low values of the porosity scaled thermal conductivity ratio or the interphase heat transfer parameter.     

Ferromagnetic Convection in a Heterogeneous Darcy Porous Medium Using a Local Thermal Non-equilibrium (LTNE) Model

The combined effects of vertical heterogeneity of permeability and local thermal non-equilibrium (LTNE) on the onset of ferromagnetic convection in a ferrofluid saturated Darcy porous medium in the presence of a uniform vertical magnetic field are investigated. A two-field model for temperature representing the solid and fluid phases separately is used. The eigenvalue problem is solved numerically using the Galerkin method for different forms of permeability heterogeneity function Γ(z) and their effect on the stability characteristics of the system has been analyzed in detail. It is observed that the general quadratic variation of Γ(z) with depth has more destabilizing effect on the system when compared to the homogeneous porous medium case. Besides, the influence of LTNE and magnetic parameters on the criterion for the onset of ferromagnetic convection is also assessed.     

Oscillating Convection of Nanofluid in Porous Medium

In this paper, oscillatory convection in a horizontal layer of nanofluid in porous medium is studied. For porous medium, Darcy model is applied. A linear stability theory and normal mode analysis method is used to find the solution confined between two free boundaries. The onset criterion for oscillatory convection is derived analytically and graphically. Regimes of oscillatory and non-oscillatory convection for various parameters are derived. The effects of Lewis number, concentration Rayleigh number, Prandtl?CDarcy number (Vadasz Number) and modified diffusivity ratio on the oscillatory convection are investigated graphically. We examine the validity of ??PES?? and concluded that ??PES?? is not valid for the problem.     

Mixed Convection Heat Transfer in the Annulus Between Two Concentric Vertical Cylinders Using Porous Layers

A numerical investigation of the steady-state, laminar, axi-symmetric, mixed convection heat transfer in the annulus between two concentric vertical cylinders using porous inserts is carried out. The inner cylinder is subjected to constant heat flux and the outer cylinder is insulated. A finite volume code is used to numerically solve the sets of governing equations. The Darcy–Brinkman–Forchheimer model along with Boussinesq approximation is used to solve the flow in the porous region. The Navier–Stokes equation is used to describe the flow in the clear flow region. The dependence of the average Nusselt number on several flow and geometric parameters is investigated. These include: convective parameter, λ, Darcy number, Da, thermal conductivity ratio, K _r, and porous-insert thickness to gap ratio (H/D). It is found that, in general, the heat transfer enhances by the presence of porous layers of high thermal conductivity ratios. It is also found that there is a critical thermal conductivity ratio on which if the values of Kr are higher than the critical value the average Nusselt number starts to decrease. Also, it found that at low thermal conductivity ratio (K _r ≈ 1) and for all values of λ the porous material acts as thermal insulation.     

Local Thermal Non-equilibrium and Heterogeneity Effects on the Onset of Convection in an Internally Heated Porous Medium

The effect of local thermal non-equilibrium on the onset of convection in a porous medium consisting of two horizontal layers, each internally heated, is studied analytically. Linear stability theory is applied. Variations of permeability, fluid thermal conductivity, solid thermal conductivity, source strength in the solid and fluid phases, interphase heat-transfer coefficient and porosity are considered. It is found that heterogeneity of permeability, fluid thermal conductivity and source strength in the fluid phase have a major effect; heterogeneity of interphase heat-transfer coefficient and porosity have a lesser effect, while heterogeneity of solid thermal conductivity and source strength in the solid phase are relatively unimportant.     

The Effect of Rotation on the Onset of Double Diffusive Convection in a Horizontal Anisotropic Porous Layer

The effect of rotation and anisotropy on the onset of double diffusive convection in a horizontal porous layer is investigated using a linear theory and a weak nonlinear theory. The linear theory is based on the usual normal mode technique and the nonlinear theory on the truncated Fourier series analysis. Darcy model extended to include time derivative and Coriolis terms with anisotropic permeability is used to describe the flow through porous media. The effect of rotation, mechanical and thermal anisotropy parameters, and the Prandtl number on the stationary and overstable convection is discussed. It is found that the effect of mechanical anisotropy is to allow the onset of oscillatory convection instead of stationary. It is also found that the existence of overstable motions in case of rotating porous medium is not restricted to a particular range of Prandtl number as compared to the pure viscous fluid case. The finite amplitude analysis is performed to find the thermal and solute Nusselt numbers. The effect of various parameters on heat and mass transfer is also investigated.     

Interaction of Transverse Heterogeneity and Thermal Development of Forced Convection in a Porous Medium

The classical Graetz methodology is applied to investigate the thermal development of forced convection in a parallel plate channel filled by a saturated porous medium whose permeability and thermal conductivity vary in the transverse direction. It was found that there is a significant interaction between heterogeneity and thermal development.     

Mixed Convection Adjacent to a Suddenly Heated Horizontal Circular Cylinder Embedded in a Porous Medium

The mixed convection caused when a horizontal circular cylinder is suddenly heated is investigated in the situation when the initial flow past the cylinder is uniform and its direction either upwards or downwards. An analytical series solution, which is valid at small times, is obtained using the matched asymptotic expansions technique. A numerical solution, which is valid at all times and for any values of the Rayleigh and Péclet numbers, is also obtained using a fully implicit finite-difference method. Three different regimes, when either the free or forced convection is dominant or when they have the same order of magnitude, are considered. In the free convection dominated regime, two vortices develop near the sides of the cylinder in both situations of an upward or downward external flow. Comparisons between the analytical and numerical results at small times, as well as a detailed discussion of the evolution of the numerical solution are presented. The numerical results obtained for large Rayleigh, Ra, and Péclet Pe, numbers show that a thermal boundary-layer forms adjacent to the cylinder for any value of the ratio Ra/e. The steady state boundary-layer analysis, similar to that performed by Cheng and Merkin, is analysed in comparison to the numerical solution obtained for large values of Ra and Pe at very large times.