Mathematical modeling of Aphron drilling nanofluid driven by electroosmotically modulated peristalsis through a pipe

Abstract

This analysis is conducted for a theoretical examination of the fluid flow characteristics and heat transferred by the nanoparticle-enhanced drilling muds flowing through drilling pipes under various physical conditions. Here, an important type of drilling fluid called Aphron drilling fluid is under consideration which is very effective for drilling in depleted regions. The rheological characteristics of the drilling fluid are predicted by Herschel-Bulkley fluid model. The fluid flow is driven by peristaltic pumping which is further aided by electroosmosis. The zinc oxide nanoparticles are dispersed in the aphron drilling fluid to prepare the nanofluid. The administering set of equations is simplified under the lubrication approach and the closed-form solutions are obtained for velocity and pressure gradient force. However, numerical solutions are executed for the temperature of nanofluid through built-in routine bvp4c of MATLAB. Fluid flow characteristics are analyzed for variation in physical conditions through graphical results. The outcomes of this study reveal that velocity profile substantially rises for application of forwarding electric field and temperature profile significantly decays in this case. An increment in temperature difference raises the magnitude of the Nusselt number. Furthermore, the nanoparticle volume fraction contributes to fluid acceleration and thermal conductivity of the drilling fluid.