Separation of species of a binary fluid mixture confined between two concentric rotating circular cylinders in presence of a strong radial magnetic field

Abstract

The effect of a radial magnetic field on separation of a binary mixture of incompressible viscous thermally and electrically conducting fluids confined between two concentric rotating circular cylinders with different angular velocity is examined. The equations governing the motion, temperature and concentration in cylindrical polar coordinate are solved analytically. The solution obtained in closed form for concentration distribution is plotted against the radial distances from the surface of the inner circular cylinder for various values of non-dimensional parameters. It is found that the non-dimensional parameters viz. the Hartmann number, thermal diffusion number, baro diffusion number, rotational Reynolds number, the product of Prandtl number and Eckert number, magnetic Prandtl number and the ratio of the angular velocities of inner and outer cylinders affects the species separation of rarer and lighter component significantly. The problem discussed here derives its application in the basic fluid dynamics separation processes to separate the rarer component of the different isotopes of heavier molecules where electromagnetic method of separation does not work.