Mixed Convection Heat Transfer from a Heated Spheroid: Influence of Orientation, Reynolds, and Richardson Numbers

This study numerically examines mixed convection heat transfer around a heated spheroid with an aspect ratio of 2, immersed in air with a Prandtl number of 0.72. Assuming the Boussinesq approximation, flow and temperature fields are computed under laminar conditions for Reynolds numbers from 10 to 300 and Richardson numbers from 0 to 5. The focus of the study is on developing a Nusselt number correlation that captures the effect of spheroid orientation. Results show that orientation significantly affects Nusselt number at high Reynolds numbers and low Richardson numbers, but this effect diminishes as Reynolds decreases or Richardson increases. A general correlation is proposed and shown to accurately predict Nusselt number across the studied range.