Numerical Study of Natural Convective Flow of a Nanofluid Over Rotating Truncated Cone with Convective Heating

Abstract

In this paper, we consider the natural convection flow of a nanofluid simultaneously heat and mass transfer over a truncated rotating porous cone with convective boundary condition. Buongiorno’s model is used to describe the present nanofluid flow problem which is represented by Brownian motion and thermophoresis effects. Governing set of nonlinear boundary layer equations for the nanofluid over a rotating truncated cone is converted into a set of non-similar forms through non-similarity transformations. The obtained reduced nonlinear PDE system is linearized locally and solved via an accurate Chebyshev Spectral Collocation Method. The accuracy of the obtained numerical solutions is tested against existing results in the literature for specific cases and demonstrates good agreement. In addition, the impacts of active parameters such as the rotational parameter (0 ≤ χ ≤ 3), Biot number (0.1 ≤ Bi ≤ 1), and suction/injection parameter (−0.5 ≤ fw ≤ 0.5) on velocities, temperature, and nanoparticle volume fraction profiles along with heat and mass transfer rates are examined. It is found that the local surface drag and heat transfer rate increase, and the nanoparticle mass transfer rate decreases, with the increase in both the spinning parameter and Biot number.