Fluid flow and heat transfer in power-law fluids across circular cylinders - Analytical study

An integral approach of the boundary layer analysis is employed for the modeling of fluid flow around and heat transfer from infinite circular cylinders in power-law fluids. The Von Karman-Pohlhausen method is used to solve the momentum integral equation whereas the energy integral equation is solved for both isothermal and isoflux boundary conditions. A fourth-order velocity profile in the hydrodynamic boundary layer and a third order temperature profile in the thermal boundary layer are used to solve both integral equations. Closed form expressions are obtained for the drag and heat transfer coefficients that can be used for a wide range of the power-law index, and generalized Reynolds and Prandtl numbers. It is found that pseudoplastic fluids offer less skin friction and higher heat transfer coefficients than dilatant fluids. As a result, the drag coefficients decrease and the heat transfer increases with the decrease in power-law index. Comparison of the analytical models with available experimental/numerical data proves the applicability of the integral approach for power-law fluids.