Effects of variable viscosity and thermal conductivity on magnetohydrodynamic free convection dusty fluid along a vertical porous plate with heat generation

Abstract

The present study investigated the effects of variable viscosity and thermal conductivity on a two-dimensional steady laminar magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) free convective boundary layer flow of a dusty fluid over a vertical porous flat plate with viscous dissipation, Joule heating, and heat generation/absorption. Governing partial differential equations of motion were reduced to a system of ordinary differential equations using similarity transformations. The resulting boundary value problem was then solved numerically using the shooting technique. Velocity, temperature, and species concentration profiles of fluid and solid particles were obtained for different flow governing parameters. The results are presented in graphs. We found that viscosity and species concentration decrease and temperature increases with the increasing value of the viscosity variation parameter for both the fluid and dust particles. Quite the opposite phenomenon was seen with the thermal conductivity variation parameter. Finally, the skin friction coefficient, Nusselt number, and Sherwood number are presented in tables for various flow governing parameters.