Nonlinear study of convective heat transfer and fluid flows induced by travelling thermal waves

Abstract

A nonlinear study is made of the convective heat transfer and the fluid flow in an incompressible viscous fluid confined to a vertical wavy channel in four different geometrical configurations. The flow is generated by the periodic thermal waves prescribed at the wavy walls of the channel. The problem is solved by a perturbation technique with the assumption that the solution consists of a mean part and a perturbed part. The mean, perturbed and the total solutions are numerically evaluated for various values of the physical parameters involved in the problem. The mean solution is found to be in good agreement with that obtained by Vajravelu and Sastri [4]. The perturbed part of the solution is made of the contributions from the waviness of the channel walls and the travelling thermal waves. Of all the parameters, the heat source parameter plays an important role in augmenting (diminishing) the skin friction (the heat transfer) at the wally=1. Several interesting properties of the flow field and the heat transfer are discussed. The results of this analysis are also graphically presented.