Similarity Solution of Marangoni Convection Boundary Layer Flow over a Flat Surface in a Nanofluid

Abstract EN

The problem of steady Marangoni boundary layer flow and heat transfer over a flat plate in a nanofluid is studied using different types of nanoparticles.

The general governing partial differential equations are transformed into a set of two nonlinear ordinary differential equations using unique similarity transformation.

Numerical solutions of the similarity equations are obtained using the Runge-Kutta-Fehlberg (RKF) method.

Three different types of nanoparticles are considered, namely, Cu, Al2O3, and TiO2, by using water as a base fluid with Prandtl number Pr=6.2.

The effects of the nanoparticle volume fraction ϕ and the constant exponent m on the flow and heat transfer characteristics are obtained and discussed.