Augmentation of Pure Mixed Convection Heat Transfer in a Non-Newtonian Power-Law Fluid Filled Lid-Driven Trapezoidal Cavity With Double Rotating Cylinders

Abstract

In this study, a numerical investigation on mixed convection inside a trapezoidal cavity with a pair of rotating cylinders has been conducted. Three different power-law fluid indexes (n = 1.4, 1.0, and 0.6) have been considered to model different sets of non-Newtonian fluids. Four separate cases are considered based on the rotational orientation of the cylinders within the cavity. In the first two cases, the cylinders rotate in the same direction, i.e., both counterclockwise (CCW), and both clockwise (CW), whereas, in the other two cases, cylinders rotate in opposite directions (CW–CCW and CCW–CW). Simulations have been carried out over a broad range of Reynolds number (from 0.5 to 500) and angular speeds (a dimensionless value from 0 to 10). The average Nusselt number values at the isothermal hot inclined cavity surface are determined to evaluate heat transfer performance in various circumstances. Streamlines and isotherm contours are also plotted for a better understanding of the effects of different cases for various parameters on thermal and fluid flow fields. It is found that the Nusselt number varies nonlinearly with different angular speeds of the cylinders. The combined effect of the mixing induced by cylinder rotation and viscosity characteristics of the fluid dictates the heat transfer in the system. Predictions from the numerical investigation provide insights into the sets of key parametric configurations that have a dominant influence on the thermal performance of the lid-driven cavity with double rotating cylinders.