Mixed convection in a partially divided rectangular enclosure

Combined free convection and forced convection in a partially divided enclosure with a finite-size heat source is studied numerically. The enclosure is partially divided by a conductive vertical divider protruding from the floor or the ceiling of the enclosure. The present study simulates a practical system such as air-cooled electronic equipment with heated components. Emphasis is placed on the influence of the location and the height of the divider, as well as the locations of the source and the outflow opening. The developed mathematical model is governed by the coupled equations of stream function, vorticity transport, and energy and is solved by employing the cubic spline collocation scheme. The computation is carried out for wide ranges of Reynolds and Grashof numbers. The results indicate that the average Nusselt number and the dimensionless surface temperature on the heat source strongly depend on the location and the height of the divider. The basic nature of the resulting interaction between the forced external airstream and the buoyancy-driven flow by the heat source is explained by the heat transfer coefficient and the patterns of the streamlines and the isotherms.