Finite-difference solution of unsteady natural convection flow past a nonisothermal vertical cone under the influence of a magnetic field and thermal radiation

An analysis is performed to study the heat transfer characteristics of natural convection over a vertical cone under the combined effects of a magnetic field and thermal radiation. The cone surface is subjected to a variable surface temperature. The fluid considered is a gray absorbing/emitting, but non-scattering medium. The boundary layer equations governing the flow are reduced to non-dimensional equations using non-dimensional quantities valid in the free-convection regime. The resulting non-dimensional governing equations are solved by an implicit finite-difference method of the Crank–Nicolson type, which is rapidly convergent and unconditionally stable. Numerical results are obtained for velocity, temperature, local and average skin friction, and local and average Nusselt numbers for various values of parameters occurring in the problem and are presented in the graphical form. Excellent agreement of the results obtained with available data is demonstrated.