Regular Article

Simulation of mixed convection in a horizontal channel heated from below by the lattice Boltzmann method^*

¹ Laboratory of Numerical and Experimental Modelling of Mechanical Phenomena, MSMTP-Group, Mechanical Engineering Department (UMAB), BP300, Mostaganem 27000, Algeria
² University of Abdelhamid ibn Badis University of Mostaganem (UMAB), BP300, Mostaganem 27000, Algeria

^a e-mail: samir.houat@univ-mosta.dz

Received: 4 February 2017
Revised: 28 February 2017
Accepted: 22 March 2017
Published online: 12 May 2017

Abstract

We perform a contribution with a simulation study of the mixed convection in horizontal channel heated from below. The lattice Boltzmann method (LBM) is used with the Boussinesq approximation to solve the coupled phenomenon that governs the systems thermo-hydrodynamics. The double populations thermal lattice Boltzmann model (TLBM) is used with the D2Q5 for the thermal field and D2Q9 model for the dynamic field. A comparison of the results of the averaged Nusselt number obtained by the TLBM with other references is presented for an area stretching. The streamlines, the vortices, the isotherms, the velocity profiles and other parameters of the study, are presented at a certain time t_T which is chosen arbitrarily. The results presented here are in good agreement with those reported in the scientific literature which gives us high expectations about the reliability of the TLBM to simulate this kind of physical phenomena.