Abstract
In the present study, the three-dimensional natural convection and entropy generation in a cuboid enclosure included with various discrete active walls is analyzed using lattice Boltzmann method. The enclosure is filled with CuO–water nanofluid. To predict thermo-physical properties, dynamic viscosity and thermal conductivity, of CuO–water nanofluid, the KKL model is applied to consider the effect of Brownian motion on nanofluid properties. In lattice Boltzmann simulation, two different MRT models are used to solve the problem. The D3Q7-MRT model is used to solve the temperature filed, and the D3Q19 is employed to solve the fluid flow of natural convection within the enclosure. The influences of different Rayleigh numbers 103<Ra<106 and solid volume fractions 0<φ<0.04 and four different arrangements of discrete active walls on the fluid flow, heat transfer, total entropy generation, local heat transfer irreversibility and local fluid friction irreversibility are presented comprehensively.