A Numerical Analysis of Non-Newtonian Power-Law Fluid Flow in a Lid-Driven Cavity with Variable Lid Motion

The Numerical Study of flow behaviour in a two- dimensional square lid- driven cavity containing power- law fluids. The work aims to investigate the influence of the variation of the moving length of the top lid on the fluid flow behaviour, velocity profiles and vortex creation. The power- law fluid model is employed to simulate non- Newtonian fluids with power-law indices varying from shear- thinning (n1) fluids. The finite volume method with a staggered grid arrangement and the simple algorithm for the pressure- velocity coupling technique is employed to solve the governing equations. The results show that a decrease in the moving length of the top lid results in localized flow perturbations with substantial influences on the primary vortex intensity and secondary vortex formation. The flow penetration inside the cavity is deeper for shear- thinning fluids with a smaller moving length, while resistance to flow is higher for shear- thickening fluids. The Reynolds number is held constant at Re=100 for all computations to demonstrate the dominance of viscous forces.