Momentum and thermal transport analysis in MHD nanofluid through the thermally heated square conduit: Finite element method

Abstract

ObjectiveThe purpose of this investigation is to report the thermal performance of water-based nanofluids with two different types of hybrid nanofluids for the cooling process of the radiator inside the thermally heated square cavity under the addition of thermal radiation and magnetic field by using the finite element method. Research gapThe heat transfer analysis of MHD nanofluid with the suspension of titanium alloy Ti6A14V and aluminum alloy AA7075 in cavity flow problems under the effects of thermal radiation and thermal boundary conditions by using the Galerkin finite element method is not reported before. NoveltyIn this numerical investigation, the novel mathematical model of two types of titanium alloy Ti6A14V (class of titanium) and aluminum alloy AA7075 is proposed first time in the cavity flows under the influence of a uniform magnetic field and non-uniform thermally heated bottom wall. The momentum and energy equations are updated with terms of magnetic field and thermal radiation, respectively. The cavity is filled with AA7075- Ti6A14V/water nanofluids. Two parallel vertical walls of the cavity are set at constant temperatures (Tc) and the top one is adiabatic while the temperature at the lower wall is taken as the variable. Method of solutionThe physical model is composed in terms of nonlinear differential equations and transformed into a dimensionless form by using suitable non-dimensional quantities. The Galerkin finite element method along with iterative Newton’s Raphson method is selected to simulate the problem and obtain the numerical solution with a high degree of accuracy. The results are illustrated for fixed Prandtl number Pr=10.0 throughout the calculation, Rayleigh number 1000≤Ra≤100000, nanoparticle volume friction 0.0≤ϕ≤0.05 Hartman number 0≤Ha≤10 and thermal radiation parameter 1.0≤Ra≤10.0. Both grid independence tests and comparison tests are directed to get the accuracy of the established model. Important findingsThe computational results revealed that the aluminum alloy (AA7075) alloys nanoparticles are more productive as compared to titanium (Ti6Al4V) alloy nanoparticles in terms of enhancing the thermal features of water-based nanofluid. The aluminum alloy nanofluid and titanium alloy nanofluid provide 3.9 % & 5.7 % and 2.9 % & 4.2 % more heat transfer at the bottom and side walls as compared to regular fluid. ApplicationsThe current nanofluid models are more efficient than the conventional model to control the heat transfer rate and flow phenomena. The computational results revealed that if the radiator is assembled by using the modern concept of hybrid nanofluid then that will increase the heat transfer of the engine and enhance the lifespan of the machinery.