Open Access

ARTICLE

Influence of Multiple Electromagnetic Sources for Heat Transfer Improvement of Ferrofluid Flow inside the Serpentine Tube: A Computational Study

M. Barzegar Gerdroodbary^1,*, S. Valiallah Mousavi², Seyyed Amirreza Abdollahi³

1 Department of Mechanical Engineering, Iranian Research Organization for Science and Technology (IROST), Tehran, Iran
2 Department of Mechanical Engineering, Technical and Vocational University (TVU), Tehran, Iran
3 Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, University of Tabriz, Tabriz, Iran

* Corresponding Authors: M. Barzegar Gerdroodbary. Email: ,

(This article belongs to the Special Issue: Applications of Modelling and Simulation in Nanofluids)

Computer Modeling in Engineering & Sciences 2026, 146(2), 21 https://doi.org/10.32604/cmes.2026.076115

Received 14 November 2025; Accepted 28 January 2026; Issue published 26 February 2026

Abstract

This study investigates the enhancement of convective heat transfer in a serpentine pipe using ferrofluid flow influenced by dual non-uniform magnetic sources. The primary objective is to improve thermal performance in compact cooling systems, such as those used in heat exchangers. A two-dimensional, steady-state Computational Fluid Dynamic (CFD) model is developed in ANSYS Fluent to simulate the behavior of an incompressible ferrofluid under applied constant heat flux and magnetic fields. The magnetic force is modeled using the Kelvin force, which acts on magnetized nanoparticles in response to spatially varying electromagnetic fields generated by two strategically positioned current-carrying wires. The effects of magnetic field strength, quantified by the magnetic number (Mn), on flow behavior and temperature distribution are thoroughly analyzed. The results indicate that increasing Mn leads to higher Nusselt numbers, demonstrating enhanced convective heat transfer. Secondary vortices induced by magnetic forcing improve fluid mixing, particularly in curved regions of the pipe. A mesh-independence study and model validation with benchmark data support the reliability of the numerical framework. This work highlights the potential of magnetic-field-assisted thermal control in energy-efficient cooling applications and provides a foundation for the further development of advanced ferrofluid-based heat transfer systems.

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Keywords

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