Effects of chemical reaction on boundary layer flow past a vertical stretching surface in the presence of internal heat generation

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effects of first‐order homogeneous chemical reaction on a two‐dimensional boundary layer flow past a vertical stretching surface in the presence of internal heat generation.

Design/methodology/approach

Using the Boussinesq and boundary‐layer approximations, the fluid equations for momentum, energy balance and concentration governing the problem are formulated. The governing partial differential equations are transformed using similarity transformations into a set of coupled ordinary differential equations that are solved numerically using a shooting technique and a sixth‐order Runge‐Kutta scheme.

Findings

It was found that for positive values of the buoyancy parameters, the local skin friction and mass transfer coefficients increase with increasing Eckert and Schmidt numbers while the heat transfer coefficient decreases with both Eckert and Schmidt numbers. Both the velocity and temperature profiles increase significantly when the heat generation parameter increases.

Practical implications

Continuous surface heat and mass transfer problems occur naturally in metallurgical process such as in the aerodynamic extrusion of plastic sheets, hot rolling and the cooling of metallic plates in a cooling bath. This work provides a very useful source of information for researchers on this subject.

Originality/value

This paper illustrates the effects of chemical reaction on boundary layer flow past a vertical stretching surface in the presence of internal heat generation.

Citation

Makinde, O.D. and Sibanda, P. (2011), "Effects of chemical reaction on boundary layer flow past a vertical stretching surface in the presence of internal heat generation", International Journal of Numerical Methods for Heat & Fluid Flow, Vol. 21 No. 6, pp. 779-792. https://doi.org/10.1108/09615531111148509