Effect of heating location and size on MHD mixed convection in a lid‐driven cavity

Abstract

Purpose

The main objective of the present study is to investigate the effects of various lengths and different locations of the heater on the left sidewall in a square lid‐driven cavity.

Design/methodology/approach

The non‐dimensional equations are discretized by the finite‐volume method. The upwind scheme and the central difference scheme are implemented for the convection and the diffusion terms, respectively.

Findings

On increasing the Richardson number, the overall heat transfer is increased whether the length and the location of the heater is considered or not. Among the various lengths of the heater considered, the total heat transfer is better only for the length LH=1/3 of the heater if it is extended from top or bottom of the cavity. In the case of location of the heater, the average heat transfer enhances for center location of the heater. Existence of the magnetic field suppresses the convective heat transfer and the fluid flow.

Practical implications

The results can be used in the cooling of electronic devices and heat transfer improvement in heat exchangers.

Originality/value

The numerical results obtained here focus on the detailed investigation of flow and temperature field in a discretely heated lid‐driven square cavity. The findings will be helpful in many applications such as heat exchangers and cooling of electronic devices.

Citation

Malleswaran, A., Sivasankaran, S. and Bhuvaneswari, M. (2013), "Effect of heating location and size on MHD mixed convection in a lid‐driven cavity", International Journal of Numerical Methods for Heat & Fluid Flow, Vol. 23 No. 5, pp. 867-884. https://doi.org/10.1108/HFF-04-2011-0082