20th European Symposium on Computer Aided Process Engineering – ESCAPE20

S. Pierucci and G. Buzzi Ferraris (Editors)

© 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Hydrodynamic and thermal characterization of the

flow of a Herschel-Bulkley fluid in a pipe
Nabila Labsi, Youb Khaled Benkahla, Abdelkader Boutra
Faculté de Génie Mécanique et de Génie des Procédés, Université des Sciences et de la
Technologie Houari Boumediene. B.P. 32 El-Alia Bab Ezzouar 16111 – Algiers, Algeria
E-mail: nabilalabsi@yahoo.fr, youbenkahla@yahoo.fr, aeknad@yahoo.fr

Abstract
The present study concerns the numerical analysis of hydrodynamic and thermal
characteristics of the flow of an incompressible Herschel-Bulkley fluid of constant
physical and rheological properties. The flow takes place within a horizontal pipe of
circular cross section. The pipe is maintained at uniform parietal temperature and is the
seat of forced convection heat transfer. Because of the viscous character of this type of
fluid, viscous dissipation is taken into account.

Keywords: Herschel-Bulkley fluid, circular pipe, uniform parietal temperature, finite

volume method, viscous dissipation.

1. Introduction
Viscoplastic fluids are encountered in many industrial applications. They are
characterized by a yield stress from which the fluid moves. The general model which
describes this class of non Newtonian fluids is the Herschel-Bulkley model. Recently,
Nouar (2005) studied free and forced convection heat transfer of this fluid flow in a
horizontal circular pipe subjected to a constant parietal heat flux. They analyzed the
effect of thermodependency of the fluid consistency and its density on the secondary
flows and gave correlations for the Nusselt number and the wall shear stress. It is to be
noticed that viscous dissipation’s effect of this category of fluids has not yet been
deeply investigated, especially for negative values of the Brinkman number.
The present work deals with a numerical study of laminar forced convection of a
Herschel-Bulkley fluid, for which the power law index is taken equal to 1 and 1.5. This
fluid is incompressible and of constant physical and rheological properties. We consider
in this study a great value of the Prandtl number in order to get close to industrial
applications concerning this category of fluids. The flow takes place within a horizontal
circular pipe, subjected to a constant parietal temperature. Viscous dissipation will be
considered, by taking both cases of wall heating and wall cooling.

2. Governing Equations
Let’s consider the laminar steady flow of an incompressible Herschel-Bulkley fluid in a
circular pipe of length L and radius rw maintained at constant wall temperature Tw. The
dimensionless governing equations, i.e. continuity, momentum and energy equations are
respectively given by:
1 ∂ (RV ) ∂U
+ =0 (Eqn. nr. 1)
R ∂R ∂X
 N. Labsi et al.

1 ∂ (R V V ) ∂ (U V ) ∂P* 1 ⎡1 ∂ ⎛ ∂V ⎞ ∂ ⎛ ∂V ⎞ ⎤
+ =− + ⎜η R ⎟+ ⎜η ⎟
R ∂R ∂X ∂R Re ⎢⎣ R ∂R ⎜⎝ eff ∂R ⎟⎠ ∂X ⎜⎝ eff ∂X ⎟⎠ ⎥⎦
(Eqn. nr. 2)
∂ ⎛V ⎞ ⎤
+
1
Re
⎡V ∂
( ) V ∂ ∂U
( )∂
( )
⎢ R ∂R ηeff − ηeff 2 + ∂X ηeff ∂R + R ∂R ηeff ∂R ⎜ R ⎟ ⎥
⎣ R ⎝ ⎠⎦

1 ∂ (R V U ) ∂ (U U ) ∂P ∗ 1 ⎡1 ∂ ⎛ ∂U ⎞
+ =− + ⎢ ⎜ ηeff R ⎟
R ∂R ∂X ∂X Re ⎣ R ∂R ⎝ ∂R ⎠
(Eqn. nr. 3)
+
∂ ⎛
⎜ ηeff
∂X ⎝
∂U ⎞⎤ 1 ⎡ ∂
⎟⎥ + ⎢
∂X ⎠⎦ Re ⎣ ∂R
ηeff
∂V
∂X
( )+
∂
∂X
ηeff
∂U ⎤
∂X ⎥⎦
( )

1 ∂(R V φ) ∂(Uφ) 1 ⎡ 1 ∂ ⎛ ∂φ ⎞ ∂ 2φ ⎤
+ = ⎢ ⎜R ⎟+ 2⎥
R ∂R ∂X Pr Re ⎣⎢ R ∂R ⎝ ∂R ⎠ ∂X ⎦⎥
⎡ ⎧ 2 2 2⎫ 2⎤
(Eqn. nr. 4)
Br ⎪⎛ ∂V ⎞ ⎛ ∂U ⎞ ⎛V ⎞ ⎪ ⎛ ∂U ∂V ⎞ ⎥
+ ηeff ⎢2 ⎨⎜⎜ ⎟⎟ + ⎜⎜ ⎟⎟ + ⎜⎜ ⎟⎟ ⎬ + ⎜⎜ + ⎟⎟
Pr Re ⎢ ⎝ ∂R ⎠ ⎝ ∂X ⎥
⎪ ⎠ ⎝R⎠ ⎪⎭ ⎝ ∂R ∂X ⎠ ⎥
⎣⎢ ⎩ ⎦
The general model of Herschel-Bulkley fluid is given by the following rheological law:

⎧⎪τ = K γ& n + τ 0 τ ≥ τ0
⎨ (Eqn. nr. 5)
⎪⎩γ& = 0 τ < τ0
In order to avoid numerical instabilities in the low shear rate region, many authors (Min
et al., 1997; Mitsoulis, 2004; Mitsoulis et al., 2008) recommend to use the following
constitutive law proposed by Papanastasiou, for which they advised to take m = 1000 s:
HB
ηeff = γ& n − 1 + [ 1 − exp (− M γ&)] (Eqn. nr. 6)
γ&
As boundary conditions, we suppose a uniform axial velocity and temperature at the
inlet (U = φ = 1, V = 0). No-slip conditions are applied at the wall along the pipe where
a constant parietal temperature is assumed (U = V = φ = 0). Finally, at the symmetry
plan (θ = 0), we consider: (∂φ/∂θ) = (∂U/∂θ) = (∂V/∂θ) = 0.
The governing equations quoted previously, are solved numerically using the finite
volume method proposed by Patankar (1980). They are discretized and put in the form
of an algebraic equation which is solved using a computing code based on the
SIMPLER algorithm, by considering a 150x50 non uniform mesh.

3. Results and Discussion

3.1. Validation of the computing code
To validate our computing code, we considered the limit case of a Bingham fluid (τ0 ≠ 0
and n = 1) and we compared the axial evolution of the Nusselt number obtained from
this code with the one obtained by Min et al. (1997). The comparison in Fig. 1, shows
that the results are in good agreement since the relative gap is about 1.6% and 3.4% for
Br = 0 and Br = 1, respectively.
 Hydrodynamic and thermal characterization of the flow of a Herschel-Bulkley fluid in a
pipe

60
Present study
Min et al. (1997)
50

40

Br = 1
O
Nux
30

20

Br = 0
10 O

0
0,1 1 10
X

Fig. 1: Axial evolution of the Nusselt number. n = 1, Re = 25, HB = 1.99, Pr = 1.

3.2. Effect of Reynolds Number

Figs. 2(a) and 2(b) show the axial evolution of the Nusselt number for various values of
Reynolds number, when viscous dissipation is neglected (Br = 0). The curves present a
pronounced decrease near the inlet, followed by an asymptotic tendency to Nu∞ = 3.8
and Nu∞ = 3.6 for n = 1 and n = 1.5 respectively, independent from Reynolds number.
This region corresponds to the thermal fully developed flow. In addition, the local
Nusselt number and the thermal entrance length increase when the Reynolds number
increases.
200 200
Re = 500 Re = 500
180 180
Re = 100 Re = 100
160 Re = 50 160 Re = 50
Re = 20 Re = 20
140 140
120 120

100 100
Nux
Nux

80 80

60 60

40 40

20 20 3.60
3.80
0 0

-20 -20
0,01 0,1 1 10 100 0,01 0,1 1 10 100
X X
(a) (b)
Fig. 2: Axial evolution of the Nusselt number for various values of the Reynolds
number. HB = 2, Pr = 50, Br = 0. (a) n = 1 (b) n = 1.5

3.3. Effect of Herschel-Bulkley Number

The Herschel-Bulkley number is a dimensionless number which represents the yield
stress of the Herschel-Bulkley fluid. Figs. 3(a) and 3(b) show the fully developed
velocity profiles for various values of the Herschel-Bulkley number when Br = 0, by
considering n = 1 and n = 1.5. We note that all the curves, except the one corresponding
to HB = 0 (Newtonian fluid when n = 1 and dilatant Ostwald-De Waele fluid when
n = 1.5), present two regions: a region close to the wall characterized by a parabolic
velocity profile and a zone around the centreline which represents a uniform velocity
distribution, called “core region”. In this region, the shear stress is less than the yield
stress, the fluid resists consequently to deformations and moves like a rigid solid.
 N. Labsi et al.

2,4 2,4
HB = 10 HB = 10
HB = 5 HB = 5
2,0 HB = 0 2,0 HB = 0

1,6 1,6
U

1,2 1,2

U
0,8 0,8

0,4 0,4

0,0 0,0
0,0 0,1 0,2 0,3 0,4 0,5 0,0 0,1 0,2 0,3 0,4 0,5
R R
(a) (b)
Fig. 3: Fully developed velocity profiles for various values of the Herschel-Bulkley
number. Re = 20, Pr = 50, Br = 0. (a) n = 1 (b) n = 1.5

The effect of Herschel-Bulkley number variation on heat transfer (the Nusselt number)
is shown in Figs 4(a) and 4(b), for the case where viscous dissipation is neglected. We
can see, for n = 1 and n = 1.5, that the increase of the Herschel-Bulkley number
improves heat transfer in the fully developed region. However, this effect is not very
significant at the inlet. In addition, this effect is less noticeable for n = 1.5.

HB = 10 HB = 10
HB = 5 HB = 5
HB = 0 HB = 0
Nux

Nux

10 10

0,1 1 10 100 0,1 1 10 100

X X
(a) (b)

Fig. 4: Axial evolution of the Nusselt number for different values of the Herschel-
Bulkley number. Re = 20, Pr = 50, Br = 0. (a) n = 1 (b) n = 1.5

3.4. Effect of Viscous Dissipation on Heat Transfer

Viscous dissipation is an energy source, represented by the Brinkman number. Taking
this function into account in the energy equation, leads to modifications on heat transfer
behaviour. Fig. 5 and Fig. 6 represent the effect of Brinkman number on the axial
evolution of the Nusselt number for n = 1 and n = 1.5 respectively, by considering both
cases of heating (Br ≺ 0) and cooling (Br ≻ 0).
First of all, we can note a pronounced decrease of the Nusselt number from the inlet
until reaching an asymptotic value which corresponds to the fully developed flow. For
both heating and cooling, this value is single and is equal to 10.66 and 9.40 for n = 1
and n = 1.5 respectively.
Hydrodynamic and thermal characterization of the flow of a Herschel-Bulkley fluid in a
pipe

100

80

60 Br = +10
Br = +5
40 Br = +2
10.66 Br = +0.1
20 Br = 0
Nux

Br = -0.1
0 3.80 Br = -2
-20 Br = -5
Br = -10
-40

-60

-80
0,1 1 10 100 1000
X

Fig. 5. Axial evolution of the Nusselt number for different values of the Brinkman
number. Re = 20, HB = 2, Pr = 50. n = 1

In addition, heat transfer is improved by the increase of the Brinkman number.

Therefore, neglecting viscous dissipation leads to undervalue heat transfer about 180%
and 164% for respectively, n = 1 and n = 1.5. It is interesting to note also, that in the
case of heating (Br ‫ط‬0), the curves present a discontinuity. We notice moreover, the
existence of negative values of the Nusselt number due to the change in heat direction.
100

80

60
Br = +10
40 Br = +5
Br = +2
20 9.40 Br = +0.1
Nux

Br = 0
0
3.55 Br = -0.1
-20 Br = -2
Br = -5
-40 Br = -10

-60

-80
0,1 1 10 100 1000
X

Fig. 6. Axial evolution of the Nusselt number for different values of the Brinkman
number. Re = 20, HB = 2, Pr = 50. n = 1.5

4. Conclusion
A numerical study based on finite volume method was carried out. It consisted on the
laminar forced convection flow of an incompressible Herschel-Bulkley fluid in a
circular pipe maintained at uniform wall temperature, by taking viscous dissipation into
account. The results, for both n = 1 and n = 1.5, show that heat transfer characteristics
are strongly affected by the variation of Reynolds and Herschel-Bulkley numbers.
 N. Labsi et al.

Actually, the Nusselt number is shown to be higher when both Reynolds and Herschel-
Bulkley numbers increase. The distinction is that this effect is noted at the inlet of the
pipe for the Reynolds number and downstream from the inlet for the Herschel-Bulkley
number’s effect. In addition, the extent of the core region increases when the Herschel-
Bulkley number increases. The same results were obtained for the limit case of a
Bingham fluid (Labsi et al. 2007). Finally and as expected, taking into account viscous
dissipation improves significantly heat transfer since the asymptotic value of the Nusselt
number is notably greater than the one corresponding to the case where viscous
dissipation is neglected. Similar behaviours were observed in a previous study
undertaken for the case of a Bingham fluid (Boutra et al., 2008).

References
A. Boutra, N. Labsi, Y.K. Benkahla, 2008, Etude thermique de l’écoulement en convection forcée
d’un fluide viscoplastique dans une conduite maintenue à température uniforme : influence de
la dissipation visqueuse, Actes du congrès de la SFT (Toulouse-France, june 3-6, 2008), 103-
108.
N. Labsi, A. Boutra, Y.K. Benkahla, 2007, Thermal study of the laminar flow of a Bingham
plastic in a horizontal circular pipe maintained at uniform temperature, Chemical Engineering
Transactions AIDIC, 8th International Conference on Chemical and Process Engineering
(ICheaP-8, June 24-27, 2007, Ischia Italy, vol. 11.
E. Mitsoulis, 2004, On creeping drag flow of a viscoplastic fluid past a circular cylinder: wall
effects, Chem. Eng. Sci., 59, 789-800.
E. Mitsoulis, S. Galazoulas, 2008, Simulation of viscoplastic flow past cylinders in tubes, J. Non-
Newtonian Fluid Mech., in press doi:10.1016/j.jnnfm.2008.10.006.
T. Min, H.G. Choi, J.Y. Yoo, H. Choi, 1997, Laminar convective heat transfer of a Bingham
plastic in a circular pipe-II. Numerical approach-hydrodynamically developing flow and
simultaneously developing flow, Int. J. Heat Mass Transfer, 40, 3689-3701.
C. Nouar, 2005, Thermal convection for a thermo-dependent yield stress fluid in an axisymmetric
horizontal duct, Int. J. Heat and Mass Transfer, 48, 5520-5535.
S.V. Patankar, 1980, Numerical heat transfer and fluid flow, McGraw. New York.

Nomenclature
Br Brinkman number, = k0 V01+n K(T0 −Tw) Dn−1 Re Reynolds number, = ρ V02 − n D n K
Cp specific heat transfer, J kg-1 K-1 T temperature, K
D pipe diameter, m T0 entrance temperature, K
HB Herschel-Bulkley number, = τ0 D n μ0V0n Tw wall temperature, K
k heat transfer conductivity, W m-2 K-1 U reduced axial velocity, = Vx/V0
K consistency index, kg m-1 s-1 V reduced radial velocity, = Vr/V0
L pipe length, m V0 mean velocity, m/s
m exponential growth parameter, s x axial coordinate, m
M reduced exponential growth parameter, X reduced axial coordinate, = x/D
= m V0 D Greek symbols
γ& strain rate, s-1
n power law index of the fluid
Nu Nusselt number, = ( −1 / φm )( ∂φ / ∂R ) η effective viscosity, kg m-1 s-1
R = 0 .5
ηeff reduced effective viscosité, = η/K
p* pressure, Pa
ρ fluid density, kg m-3
P* reduced pressure, = p*/ ρ V02
τ shear stress, Pa
Pr Prandtl number, = K C p V0n −1 k D n −1 τ0 yield stress, Pa
r radial coordinate, m φ reduced temperature, = (T - Tw)/(T0 - Tw)
rw pipe radius, m φm reduced bulk temperature,
R reduced radial coordinate, = r/D = (Tm-Tw)/(T0 -Tw)