Natural convection due to horizontal temperature and concentration gradients—1. Variable thermophysical property effects

Typically for single component fluids, the variation of thermophysical properties is negligible except in the presence of large temperature differences, and, therefore, has no appreciable effect on the heat transfer. In contradistinction, thermophysical properties can vary significantly due to concentration differences which affect the heat and mass transfer. This work examines the effects of thermophysical property variation on the heat and mass transfer in a cavity due to natural convection driven by combined thermal and solutal buoyancy forces. Results indicate that thermophysical property variations can appreciably influence heat and mass transfer and velocity distribution.