Modeling and simulation of nanofluid in low Reynolds numbers using two-phase Lattice Boltzmann method based on mixture model

In the present work, a novel two-phase scheme was implemented for modeling and simulation of Al2O3/water nanofluid within a rectangular channel with the Lattice Boltzmann method based on the mixture model. In this proposed model, a two-phase approach was adopted to consider the effect of the drift velocity of each phase. The simulations are performed in two cases at laminar flow regime and low Reynolds numbers (Re=0.5 in this case). In the first case, the results of the velocity distribution of the nanofluid through the channel were numerically validated with the finite element method results, and the predicted velocity profile at Reynolds numbers of 1, 10, and 50 showed good agreement with the velocities extracted from FEM. In the second case, the velocity distribution and particle volume fraction of the nanofluid were investigated at Reynolds numbers 0.5, 1, and 10. The results showed that considering the drift velocity in the modeling has remarkable effects only at low Reynolds numbers (Re=0.5 in this case), when the Reynolds number increases, the effect of drift velocity can be ignored. The proposed Lattice Boltzmann model is promisingly strong and suitable for engineering and scientific problems.(c) 2023 Institution of Chemical Engineers. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.