A numerical investigation of a buoyancy driven flow in a semi-porous cavity: comparative effects of ramped and isothermal wall conditions

Abstract

Abstract Steady two-dimensional natural convection taking place in a rectangular cavity, partially filled with an isotropic porous material, has been investigated numerically using an ADI method. It is assumed that one of the vertical walls of the cavity has a ramped temperature distribution. The vorticity-stream function formulation has been used to solve the set of nonlinear partial differential equations governing the flows in the clear region and the adjoining porous region. The effects of Darcy number and Rayleigh number have been discussed in detail.