An unsteady thermal investigation of a wetted longitudinal porous fin of different profiles

Abstract

The unsteady thermal behavior of a porous longitudinal fin in a fully wet circumstance in the existence of convection as well as radiation effect is modeled in the present analysis. The thickness of the fin is assumed to vary with the length of the fin. Therefore, different profiles of the fin such as rectangular, convex, as well as triangular-shaped fin have been considered. Darcy’s model is imposed to study porous nature. The derived nonlinear partial differential equation is non-dimensionalized and solved numerically with the help of Maple software by the Finite Difference Method. The transient thermal response and fin efficiency for diverse values of the significant parameters have been discussed graphically. A comparative analysis of three different shaped fins has been performed. It is found that the temperature drop rate is faster in triangular fin and efficiency is higher in rectangular fin.