FULLY-DEVELOPED FREE-CONVECTION IN OPEN-ENDED VERTICAL CONCENTRIC POROUS ANNULI

Analytical solutions for fully developed natural convection in open-ended vertical concentric porous annuli are presented. Four fundamental boundary conditions have been investigated and the corresponding fundamental solutions are obtained. These four fundamental boundary conditions are obtained by combining each of the two conditions of having one boundary maintained at uniform heat flux or at uniform wall temperature with each of the conditions that the opposite boundary is kept isothermal at the inlet fluid temperature, or adiabatic. Expressions for the flow and heat transfer parameters are given for each case. These fundamental solutions may be used to obtain solutions satisfying more general thermal boundary conditions.