Heat transfer enhancement of copper-water nanofluids in a lid-driven enclosure

A numerical study is conducted to investigate the transport mechanism of mixed convection in a lid-driven enclosure filled with nanofluids. The two vertical walls of the enclosure are insulated while the horizontal walls are kept at constant temperatures with the top surface moving at a constant speed. The numerical approach is based on the finite volume technique with a staggered grid arrangement. The SIMPLE algorithm is used for handling the pressure velocity coupling. Numerical solutions are obtained for a wide range of parameters and copper-water nanofluid is used with Pr=6.2Pr=6.2. The streamlines, isotherm plots and the variation of the average Nusselt number at the hot wall are presented and discussed. It is found that both the aspect ratio and solid volume fraction affect the fluid flow and heat transfer in the enclosure. Also, the variation of the average Nusselt number is linear with solid volume fraction.