A study on mhd free-convective flow in micro-channels

Thesis Overview

<p> </p><p>GENERAL INTRODUCTION</p><p>1.0 Introduction<br>Microflow has been given great importance in recent research activities due to its new application in microfluidic system devices, such as biomedical sample injection, biochemical cell reaction, microelectric ship cooling, etc. A fundamental understanding of the flow and thermal fields as well as the corresponding characteristics at microscale, which may deviate from those at macroscale, is required for the technological demands. Gaseous flow in microscale devices have been in the vanguard of research activities and have received great deal of attentions in recent years, due to the rapid growth of application in micrototal analysis systems and micro electromechanical systems (MEMS). These applications have raised the interest in understanding the physical aspects of fluid flow and convective heat transfer in both forced and natural forms through micron sized channels, known as micro-channels. A magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) flow, which is the simplest plasma model, has been the subject of a great number of empirical and theoretical investigations in many industrial fields. MHD flows associating with heat transfer have received considerable attention due to the fact that their applications reside in many industrial fields such as electric propulsion for space exploration, crystal growth in liquids, cooling of nuclear reactors, electronic packages, microelectronic devices, etc.<br>The most common type of body force, which acts on fluid, is attributed to gravity so that the body force vector can be deduced from the gravitational acceleration. On the other hand, when an electrically conducting fluid is subjected to a magnetic field, the fluid motion<br>induces an electric current such that the fluid velocity is reduced on account of interaction between the electric current and the fluid motion. Therefore, in case of free convection of an electrically conducting fluid in the presence of a magnetic field, there should be two body forces, i.e., a buoyancy force and a Lorentz force. They interact with each other, and in turn influence the transport phenomena of heat and mass. Among various studies of MHD free flows, few studies have been accomplished for the confined enclosures. Seki et al. (1979) studied the laminar natural convection of mercury subjected to a magnetic field parallel to gravity in a rectangular enclosure. Numerical results were obtained and compared to their experiment in the consideration of a partially heated vertical wall by uniform heat generator. Rudraiah et al. (1995) performed a numerical simulation about natural convection in a two-dimensional cavity filled with an electrically conducting fluid in the presence of a magnetic field aligned to gravity. They selected the Grashof and Hartmann numbers as controlling parameters to examine the effect of a magnetic field on free convection and associated heat transfer. Some research works were carried out on natural convection in a vertical micro-channel. Example of which are Yu and Ameel (2001), Cheng and Weng (2005) and Jha et al. (2013). Details are given in literature review.</p><p>1.1 Aim and Objectives of Study<br>The aim of this work is to study a fully developed natural convection flow of viscous, incompressible, electrically conducting fluid in a micro-channels formed by two vertical parallel plates under the effects of transverse magnetic field and suction/injection and this is achieved through the following objectives:<br>i. investigate the influence of external applied transverse magnetic field on steady natural convection flow of conducting fluid in vertical parallel plate micro-channels, and<br>ii. investigate the combined influence of external applied transverse magnetic field and suction/injection on steady natural convection flow of conducting fluid in vertical parallel plate micro-channels</p><p>1.2 Research Methodology<br>The methodology adapted in this thesis in order to achieve the set objectives is by dividing the work into five-stages. In the first stage, we reviewed some existing literature and extended them to include new parameters. Second stage is concerned with solving the mathematical model to obtain analytical solutions. In the third stage, the numerical values of the analytical solutions of the developed equations are obtained by computer package (MATLAB). The fourth stage is the graphical representation of the problems, and the last stage is the interpretation of the graphs so as to discuss the influence of each of the governing parameters and conclusions.</p><p>1.3 Organization of the Thesis<br>A study on MHD free-convective flow in vertical parallel plates micro-channels is a five-chapter thesis in order to achieve the objectives of the work. Chapter one introduces the objectives of the study and the method adopted to achieve the set objectives. Chapter two basically reviews existing literature. Chapter three gives the mathematical analysis and solutions of the governing equations with their non-dimensionalisation. While chapters four and five gives the discussion of the results/graphs, summary, concluding remarks and recommendations.</p> <br><p></p>