Assessment of boundary layer for flow of non-Newtonian material induced by a moving belt with power law viscosity and thermal conductivity models

The non-Newtonian fluids have become quite prevalent in industry and engineering for different applications. When these fluids flow over industrial equipment, a boundary layer phenomenon is developed due surface friction of equipment. In this work, a boundary layer phenomenon for two famous non-Newtonian fluids namely pseudoplastic and dilatant over moving belt is discussed. The physical problem is modeled through continuity, momentum and energy equations under boundary layer assumptions. In these equations, power law models for viscosity and thermal conductivity properties are used due to the non-linear nature of fluids. The governing equations are reduced to ordinary differential equations via similarity variables and get the analytical solution by using Mathematica package BVPh 2. The assessment of boundary layer against dimensionless velocity and temperature distribution are calculated and displaced by graphically when the belt is moving in the same and opposite direction to flow and displayed graphically. In addition, momentum and thermal boundary layers thicknesses, the thickness momentum distribution and moving fluid surface are calculated numerically to understand the boundary layer structure and the deflation in mass flow rate and in the momentum flux. A progress trend for thermal as well as momentum boundary layers has been noticed and found the maximum discrepancy in mass flow rate in case of dilatant fluid. The thickness of boundary layer region is thicker for dilatants material due to higher viscosity.

Automated summary

Non-Newtonian fluids are widely used in industry and engineering, and the boundary layer phenomenon is an important issue in fluid flow. In this study, the boundary layer phenomenon of two famous non-Newtonian fluids (pseudoplastic and dilatant) over a moving belt is simulated and analyzed. The distribution of dimensionless velocity and temperature in the boundary layer is calculated and graphically displayed. The thicknesses of momentum and thermal boundary layers, as well as the thickness of the moving fluid surface, are numerically calculated to understand the boundary layer structure and the decrease in mass flow rate and momentum flux. The study observes a trend in the development of thermal and momentum boundary layers and identifies the maximum discrepancy in mass flow rate for dilatant fluid.