Thermal dispersion effects on non-Darcy natural convection with lateral mass flux

The method of similarity solution is used to study the influence of lateral mass flux and thermal dispersion on non-Darcy natural convection over a vertical flat plate in a fluid saturated porous medium. Forchheimer extension is considered in the flow equations and the coefficient of thermal diffusivity has been assumed to be the sum of molecular diffusivity and the dispersion thermal diffusivity due to mechanical dispersion. The suction/injection velocity distribution has been assumed to have power function form Ax ^l , where x is the distance from the leading edge and the wall temperature distribution is assumed to be uniform. When l=−1/2, similarity solution is possible, and the results indicate that the boundary layer thickness decreases where as the heat transfer rate increases as the mass flux parameter passes from injection domain to the suction domain. The increase in the thermal dispersion parameter is observed to enhance the heat transfer. The combined effect of thermal dispersion and fluid suction/injection on the heat transfer rate is discussed. Received on 9 September 1996