Flow and Heat Transfer of Micropolar Ferrofluid at Stagnation Point on a Horizontal Flat Plate in the Presence of Magnetic Field and Thermal Radiation

Abstract

Ferrofluid demonstrates Newtonian or non-Newtonian fluid behaviour depending on the characteristics of ferrofluid. Generally, ferrofluid consists of a stable colloidal suspension of single-domain magnetic particles in a base fluid that can assume non-Newtonian fluid behaviour involving a spin vector and microinertia tensor in flow motion. These two properties possess the theory of micropolar fluid which exhibits microrotational motions and spin inertia in microscopic behaviour. Therefore, this theoretical study is focused to investigate the boundary layer of micropolar ferrofluid flow and heat transfer at the stagnation point on the horizontal flat plate. Magnetite (Fe3O4) nanoparticles and water (H2O) compose in ferrofluid exposed to the magnetic field and thermal radiation is considered. The influences of ferroparticles volume fraction and micropolar parameter on the ferrofluid flow and heat transfer are evaluated mathematically. The partial differential equations have been formulated based on purposed assumptions using Tiwari and Das model and are simplified into ordinary differential equations, which are then solved numerically by Runge-Kutta Fehlberg (RFK45) method. The numerical results of the velocity profile, temperature profile, angular velocity profile, reduced skin friction and reduced Nusselt number are scrutinised in different values of ferroparticles volume fraction and micropolar parameter to estimate the ferrofluid flow and heat transfer. It is found the velocity profile of micropolar ferrofluid flow increases when elevates the ferroparticles volume fraction but decreases when increasing the micropolar parameter. Meanwhile, enlarging ferroparticles volume fraction of micropolar ferrofluid also enhances the temperature profile, reduced skin friction and reduced Nusselt number in the presence of magnetic field and thermal radiation parameter.