Abstract
A numerical study of conjugate free convection heat transfer of Al2O3/water nanofluid inside a differentially heated square enclosure with a baffle attached to its hot wall has been carried out. A detailed parametric study has been carried out to analyze the effect of Rayleigh number (104 < Ra < 106), length, thickness and position of baffle, conductivity ratio and volume fraction of the nanoparticle (0<<0.2) on heat transfer. The thermal conductivity ratio of the baffle plays a major role on the conjugate heat transfer inside the enclosure. Higher the baffle length better is the effectiveness of the baffle. The average Nusselt number is found to be an increasing function of both thermal conductivity ratio and volume fraction of the nanofluid. The minimum enhancement of conjugate heat transfer is 30% when Al2O3/water nanofluid of 0.1 volume fraction is used for the entire range of Rayleigh number considered.
Highlights
Numerous applications of free convection in differentially heated enclosures can be seen in many industrial applications such as cooling of electronic gadgets, solar collectors, energy storage systems, nuclear reactors, smoke modelling and double glass windows
Numerical study of free convection inside a square enclosure with thin baffle attached to the isothermal cold wall was reported by Nagasubramanian et al [7]
The results show that the reduction in average Nusselt number was observed on the cold wall with the baffle when compared with the hot wall
Summary
Numerous applications of free convection in differentially heated enclosures can be seen in many industrial applications such as cooling of electronic gadgets, solar collectors, energy storage systems, nuclear reactors, smoke modelling and double glass windows. Many researchers have studied free convection in differentially heated enclosures extensively for different input parameters like aspect ratios, Rayleigh number, fin length, finite fin thickness or finite wall thickness. The combined effect of presence of partitions on horizontal insulated walls and overhanging transverse baffle on heat transfer performance of the enclosure was found to be significant. Numerical study of free convection inside a square enclosure with thin baffle attached to the isothermal cold wall was reported by Nagasubramanian et al [7]. The results show that the reduction in average Nusselt number was observed on the cold wall with the baffle when compared with the hot wall. Ahmed Mahmoudi et al [8] considered a single horizontal fin attached to the isothermal hot wall of a square enclosure and reported that increase in fin length results in enhancement of fin effectiveness
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
