Natural convection and radiation in porous fins

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to conduct a numerical study of the convection heat transfer in porous media by the homotopy analysis method (HAM). The geometry considered is that of a rectangular profile fin. The porous fin allows the flow to infiltrate through it and solid-fluid interaction takes place. This study is performed using Darcy's model to formulate heat transfer equation. To study the thermal performance, three types of cases are considered namely long fin, finite length fin with insulated tip and finite length fin with tip exposed. The theory section addresses the derived governing equation. The effects of the porosity parameter Sh, radiation parameter G and temperature ratio CT on the dimensionless temperature distribution and heat transfer rate are discussed. The results suggest that the radiation transfers more heat than a similar model without radiation. The auxiliary parameter in the HAM is derived by using the averaged residual error concept which significantly reduces the computational time. The use of optimal auxiliary parameter provides a superior control on the convergence and accuracy of the analytic solution. Design/methodology/approach – This study is performed using Darcy's model to formulate heat transfer equation. To study the thermal performance, three types of cases are considered namely long fin, finite length fin with insulated tip and finite length fin with tip exposed. The effects of the porosity parameter Sh, radiation parameter G and temperature ratio CT on the dimensionless temperature distribution and heat transfer rate are discussed. Findings – The HAM has been successfully applied for the thermal performance of a porous fin of rectangular profile. Solutions are derived for three cases of tip condition: an infinitely long fin with tip in thermal equilibrium with the ambient, a finite fin with an insulated tip and a finite fin with a convective tip. The performance of the fin depends on three dimensionless parameters; porosity parameter Sh, radiation-conduction parameter G and a dimensionless temperature relating the ambient and base temperatures. The results show that the base heat flow increases when the permeability of the medium is high and/or when the buoyancy effect induced in the fluid is strong. The base heat flow is enhanced as the surface radiation or the tip Biot number increases. Research limitations/implications – The analysis is made for the Darcy's model. Non-Darcy effects will be investigated in a future work. Practical implications – The approach is useful in enhancing heat transfer rates. Originality/value – The results of the study will be interested to the researchers of the field of heat exchanger designers.