Unsteady flow of an Oldroyd-B fluid generated by a constantly accelerating plate between two side walls perpendicular to the plate

The velocity field and the adequate tangential stresses corresponding to the unsteady flow of an Oldroyd-B fluid induced by a constantly accelerating plate between two side walls perpendicular to the plate are established by means of Fourier sine transforms. The solutions corresponding to Maxwell, second grade and Newtonian fluids, performing the same motion, appear as limiting cases of the solutions obtained here. In the absence of the side walls, namely when the distance between walls tends to infinity, all solutions that have been determined reduce to those corresponding to the flow over an infinite plate. Finally, for comparison, the velocity field at the middle of the channel as well as the shear stress on the bottom wall is plotted as a function of y for several values of t and of the material constants. The influence of the side walls on the motion of the fluid is also emphasized by graphical illustrations.