MHD Natural Convection with Convective Surface Boundary Condition over a Flat Plate

Abstract

We apply the one parameter continuous group method to investigate similarity solutions of magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) heat and mass transfer flow of a steady viscous incompressible fluid over a flat plate. By using the one parameter group method, similarity transformations and corresponding similarity representations are presented. A convective boundary condition is applied instead of the usual boundary conditions of constant surface temperature or constant heat flux. In addition it is assumed that viscosity, thermal conductivity, and concentration diffusivity vary linearly. Our study indicates that a similarity solution is possible if the convective heat transfer related to the hot fluid on the lower surface of the plate is directly proportional to ${(\stackrel{-}{x})}^{-\text{1}/\text{2}}$ where $\stackrel{-}{x}$ is the distance from the leading edge of the solid surface. Numerical solutions of the ordinary differential equations are obtained by the Keller Box method for different values of the controlling parameters associated with the problem.