Numerical Investigation of a Mixed Convection Flow in a Lid-Driven Cavity

Abstract

This study is devoted to the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) modeling of steady laminar mixed convection flow and heat transfer in lid driven cavity (10 ≤ <i>Re</i> ≤ 1000). The ratio of the height to the width of the cavity is ranged over <i>H/L</i> = 0.5 to 1.5. The governing equations are solved using commercial finite volume package FLUENT to visualize the nature of the flow and estimate the heat transfer inside the cavity for different aspect ratio. The simulation results are presented in terms of average Nusselt number of the hot wall, velocity profile, and temperature contours. It was found that the average Nusselt number inside the cavity is strongly governed by the aspect ratio as well as the Reynolds number. A parametric study is conducted to demonstrate the effect of aspect ratio on the flow and heat transfer characteristics. It is found that heat transfer enhancement was obtained by decreasing the aspect ratio and/or increasing the Reynolds number.