Effects of inclination angle on natural convection in enclosures filled with Cu-water nanofluid

Effects of inclination angle on natural convection heat transfer and fluid flow in a two-dimensional enclosure filled with Cu-nanofluid has been analyzed numerically. The performance of nanofluids is tested inside an enclosure by taking into account the solid particle dispersion. The angle of inclination is used as a control parameter for flow and heat transfer. It was varied from = 0° to = 120°. The governing equations are solved with finite-volume technique for the range of Rayleigh numbers as 103 ≤ Ra ≤ 105. It is found that the effect of nanoparticles concentration on Nusselt number is more pronounced at low volume fraction than at high volume fraction. Inclination angle can be a control parameter for nanofluid filled enclosure. Percentage of heat transfer enhancement using nanoparticles decreases for higher Rayleigh numbers. © 2009 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.