Stability analysis of MHD hybrid nanofluid flow over a stretching/shrinking sheet with quadratic velocity

The hybrid nanofluid has a remarkable feature in enhancing the heat transfer process and is widely utilized in manufacturing industrial applications. Thus, the present numerical analysis inspected the magnetohydrodynamic hybrid Al2O3-Cu/H2O nanofluid flow towards a permeable stretching/shrinking sheet in the occurrence of quadratic velocity. The governing equations are converted to the similarity equations and then solved numerically in the Matlab bvp4c program by varying several controlling parameters. An increment in the nanoparticle volume fraction from 0% to 2% and 4% increases the wall shear stress past a shrinking sheet, by almost 6.3% and 12.6%. There is a significant enhancement in the convective heat transfer rate, approximately 36.2% when the suction effect dominates about 19% in the boundary layer flow. Further, this study confirmed the subsistence of non-uniqueness solutions in the hybrid Al2O3-Cu/H2O nanofluid for a particular range of the shrinking parameter, while a unique solution appears in the stretching case. Stability analysis demonstrated the positive smallest eigenvalue in the first solution and thereby clearly specified a stable and attainable flow. (C) 2020 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of Faculty of Engineering, Alexandria University.

Automated summary

The study demonstrates that increasing the nanoparticle volume fraction in the magnetohydrodynamic hybrid nanofluid can enhance wall shear stress and convective heat transfer rate. Moreover, non-uniqueness solutions and unique solutions are observed under specific conditions.