Accurate Prediction of Friction Factor and Nusselt Number for Some Duct Flows of Power-Law Non-Newtonian Fluids

Using the high-order finite element method, we provide accurate predictions of the friction factor and the Nusselt number for the fully developed laminar flows of power-law-type non-Newtonian fluids in rhombic, isosceles-triangular, elliptical, and semielliptical ducts. Two kinds of thermal boundary conditions, commonly referred to as the H1 and T conditions, are considered. For each type of duct, computed results are presented for several aspect ratios with the power-law index ranging from 0.2 to 1.0. Mesh refinement tests with four different meshes are carried out for two specific duct configurations, indicating that the present predictions are remarkably insensitive to mesh density.