Abstract:
This paper investigates the effects of the fluid electric conductivity, non-uniform heat source (or sink), suction and variable
surface heat flux on the two-dimensional steady hydromagnetic convective flow of a micropolar fluid (in comparison with the
Newtonian fluid) flowing along an inclined permeable flat plate embedded in a fluid saturated porous medium. The
governing partial differential equations are transformed into locally similar ordinary differential equations and solved
numerically. The local similarity solutions are presented graphically for the velocity distribution, microrotation, and the
temperature profiles in the boundary layer. The data for the skin-friction coefficient and the local Nusselt number are
tabulated for convenient use. The significance of the physical parameters on the flow field is discussed in detail. The results
show that the skin-friction coefficient and the Nusselt number are lower for the micropolar fluid for both the cases of
constant fluid electric conductivity and the variable fluid electric conductivity when compared with the Newtonian fluid. This
observation is valid for both porous and non-porous media. The effect of temperature dependent heat generation is much
stronger than the effect of surface dependent heat generation even in the presence of a porous medium, suction at the plate
surface and variable surface heat flux. The results also show that effects of the fluid electric conductivity, non-uniform heat
generation, suction, presence of porous medium and variable surface heat flux in a micropolar fluid are less pronounced
compared with those in a Newtonian fluid.
