Combined free convection and forced convection in a partially divided
enclosure with a finite-size heat source is studied numerically. The e
nclosure is partially divided by a conductive vertical divider protrud
ing from the floor or the ceiling of the enclosure. The present study
simulates a practical system such as air-cooled electronic equipment w
ith heated components. Emphasis is placed on the influence of the loca
tion and the height of the divider, as well as the locations of the so
urce and the outflow opening. The developed mathematical model is gove
rned by the coupled equations of stream function, vorticity transport,
and energy and is solved by employing the cubic spline collocation sc
heme. The computation is carried out for wide ranges of Reynolds and G
rashof numbers. The results indicate that the average Nusselt number a
nd the dimensionless surface temperature on the heat source strongly d
epend on the location and the height of the divider. The basic nature
of the resulting interaction between the forced external airstream and
the buoyancy-driven flow by the heat source is explained by the heat
transfer coefficient and the patterns of the streamlines and the isoth
erms.