Mixed convection boundary layer flow of viscoelastic fluids past a sphere

Abstract

The mixed convection boundary layer of a viscoelastic fluid past a sphere with constant temperature is discussed. The boundary layer equations are an order higher than those for the Newtonian (viscous) fluid and the adherence boundary conditions are insufficient to determine the solution of these equations completely. The governing non-similar partial differential equations are first transformed into dimensionless forms and then solved numerically using the Keller-box method by augmenting an extra boundary condition at infinity. Numerical results are presented for different values of the viscoelastic and mixed convection parameters K and , respectively. It is found that for cases of cooling sphere and heating sphere, the boundary layer separates from the sphere. To the best of our knowledge, this important classical problem has not been studied before for the case of a viscoelastic fluid. Thus, the results are original and new for this type of fluids.