MHD Flow of Cu–Al2O3/Water Hybrid Nanofluid past a Porous Wedge with Variable Fluid Properties and Convective Boundary Condition
Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: Objective: The present study investigates the magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) boundary layer flow and thermal transport behavior of a Cu–Al2O3/water hybrid nanofluid past a porous wedge with convective boundary condition. Both viscosity and thermal conductivity are considered as functions of temperature to account for variable fluid properties, while thermal radiation and local buoyancy effects are included to model mixed convection. Method: Using appropriate similarity transformations, the system of partial differential equations governing mass, momentum, and energy is converted into nonlinear ordinary differential equations (ODEs) and tackled numerically through MATLAB’s bvp4c routine. Variations in thermal radiation, viscosity, thermal conductivity, and magnetic field strength are thoroughly examined to assess their role in velocity, temperature, skin friction, and heat transfer characteristics, and the results are presented graphically. Findings: The current results are compared with earlier studies and found a strong agreement in some specific cases. Increasing the variable viscosity parameter (θ r) from −∞ (constant case) to −2, −0.5, −0.1 and −0.05 reduces the skin friction coefficient by 27.79%, 56.91%, 81.83% and 87.86%, respectively, thereby improving the velocity profile. However, the local Nusselt number increases by 1.34%, 4.53%, 13.29% and 18.37%, which corresponds to a decrease in the temperature profile. The variable thermal conductivity parameter (θ s) increases the fluid temperature when radiation or Biot number act individually. In contrast, under their combined influence, higher θ s promotes heat dissipation, thereby decreasing the fluid temperature. Novelty: This work provides an innovative investigation into the effects of variable viscosity and thermal conductivity on MHD flow of hybrid nanofluid past a porous wedge under convective boundary condition and thermal radiation, a topic that has not yet been reported in existing literature. The proposed formulation offers a novel, unified framework for predicting more accurately the thermofluids behavior in advanced thermal management and energy system applications. Keywords: Hybrid nanofluid, Variable properties, Porous wedge, MHD flow, Similarity transformation
Author: Mwblib Basumatary
Language: English
Subfield: Biomedical Engineering
Field: Engineering
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W4415949037