MIXED CONVECTION BOUNDARY-LAYER FLOW ALONG A VERTICAL SURFACE IN A POROUS MEDIUM

Abstract

A finite-difference numerical scheme is used to study combined free- and forced-convection boundary-layer flow in a porous medium near a vertical wall. The model results show that the inertial and viscous effects have a significant influence on the velocity profiles and heat transfer rate at the surface. The dimensionless parameters Pr, Gr/Re, and Re all have a marked effect on the velocity and temperature distributions within the boundary layer. Consideration is also given to the effects of porosity variation and of low blowing velocities at the surface. It is found that while porosity variation has a negligible effect on the results, blowing at the walls produces large changes in the velocity and temperature distributions.