A numerical study of the laminar mixed convection of micropolar fluids in a
square cavity with localized heat source is presented. The flow in the cav
ity includes the externally induced :stream at ambient temperature and the
free flow induced by heat source. The transport equations of vorticity, ang
ular momentum, and energy are solved with the aid of the cubic spline collo
cation method. The computation is carried out for wide ranges of Reynolds n
umber, Grashof number, and various material parameters associated with the
micropolar fluids. Emphasis is aimed at the significant features displayed
by the micropolar fluids. The results indicate that both the flow and the t
hermal fields depend on the vortex viscosity and spin gradient viscosity to
a large extent. The heat transfer coefficient of micropolar fluids is foun
d to be smaller than that of Newtonian fluids. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Lt
d. All rights reserved.