On the analytic solution of the steady flow of a fourth grade fluid

The steady flow of a fourth grade fluid is a problem belonging to non-Newtonian fluid mechanics and deserves to be more widely studied than it has been to date. In the non-linear regime the literature is scarce. We develop a formulation suitable for solution of hydrodynamic equation containing non-linear theological effects of fourth grade fluids. The homotopy analysis method (HAM) is used to investigate the flow of a fourth grade fluid past a porous plate. Explicit analytic solution is given. The non-linear effects on the velocity distribution is shown and discussed. Comparison of the present analysis is also made with the existing results in the literature. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.