Numerical investigation of MHD effects on nanofluid heat transfer in a baffled U-shaped enclosure using lattice Boltzmann method

Lattice Boltzmann method (LBM) was carried out to investigate the effects of magnetic field and nanofluid on the natural convection heat transfer in a baffled U-shaped enclosure. The combination of different specifications of the baffle, LBM, nanofluid and magnetic field is the main innovation in the present study. In order to consider the effect of Brownian motion on the thermal conductivity, Koo–Kleinstreuer–Li model is used to define thermal conductivity and viscosity of nanofluid. Effects of Rayleigh number, Hartmann number, nanoparticle volume fraction, height and position of the baffle on the fluid flow and heat transfer characteristics have been examined. It was found that raising the Rayleigh number and nanoparticle solid volume fraction leads to increase the average Nusselt number irrespective of the position of the hot obstacle. However, the heat transfer rate is suppressed by the magnetic field. The heat transfer enhancement by introducing nanofluid decreases as increasing Rayleigh number, but it increases as increasing the Hartmann number. Moreover, the maximum heat transfer rate was observed when the enclosure equipped with a baffle with (s, h) = (0.2, 0.3) or (0.4, 0.3).