Magnetohydrodynamic Effects Upon Heat Transfer for Laminar Flow Across a Flat Plate

Abstract

Forced-convection heat transfer for laminar flow of electrically conducting fluids across a flat plate is considered for a magnetic field of constant inductance acting normal to the free stream velocity and fixed relative to the plate. The boundary condition on the surface of the plate is taken to be either a constant temperature or constant heat flux, and solutions are presented for the following cases: (a) Fluids having a Prandtl number of unity for which both Joule heating and frictional heating are accounted for; (b) fluids having moderate and large Prandtl numbers for negligible Joule and frictional heating; and (c) fluids having low Prandtl numbers for negligible frictional heating.