SUMMARY

The objective of this Ph.D. proposal is to investigate the effect of wavy walled channel geometries on laminar fluid flow and heat/mass transfer. To this end, we will develop a computational model based on the lattice Boltzmann method, explicit finite differences and Brownian dynamics to simulate unsteady viscous flow and heat/mass transport in complex channel geometries and use this model to systematically examine these processes. Furthermore, we will investigate the formation of deposit layers resulting from thermophoretic deposition of particulates transported by the flow onto the channel walls and will probe how this process can be mitigated using a wavy wall geometry. The results from our studies will be important for designing laminar heat/mass exchangers utilizing unsteady flows for enhancing transport processes. Additionally these results will be useful for developing heat exchangers which are less prone to fouling.