Thermal management of magneto-ferrofluid operated circular thermal systems with thermal radiation, peripheral distributed heating, and Y-shaped cooling channels

This investigation presents a comprehensive numerical analysis of magneto-ferrofluid thermal management in circular enclosures featuring peripheral distributed heating and Y-shaped cooling channels. The study examines Fe3O4-H2O ferrofluid convection under varying geometric configurations, magnetic field conditions, and thermal radiation effects using finite element methodology. The governing equations incorporating magnetohydrodynamic effects and thermal radiation are solved across varying Rayleigh numbers (103 ≤ Ra ≤ 106), Hartmann numbers (0 ≤ Ha ≤ 70), magnetic field inclination angles (0° ≤ γ ≤ 150°), radiation parameters (0 ≤ Rd ≤ 3), and Y-shaped cooling channel heights (0.1 ≤ ht ≤ 0.35). Results demonstrate that heat transfer enhancement reaches 301% as Ra increases from 103 to 106, while magnetic field application provides systematic flow control with up to 42% suppression at Ha = 70. Thermal radiation substantially augments thermal performance, yielding 165% enhancement at Rd = 3 through synergistic radiation-convection coupling. The Y-shaped cooling channel height emerges as a critical geometric parameter, with optimal configurations (ht = 0.3–0.35) providing 23% performance improvement over baseline designs. Heatline visualization reveals complex energy transport pathways transitioning from conduction-dominated to convection-controlled mechanisms under varying operational conditions. Entropy generation analysis indicates thermal irreversibilities dominate at low Ra, while viscous and magnetic contributions intensify at higher Ra values. The investigation demonstrates that Fe3O4-H2O ferrofluid systems achieve exceptional thermal management performance through multi-modal enhancement strategies that combine geometric optimization, magnetic field control, and radiation effects. The developed correlations provide design guidelines for optimizing advanced thermal management systems in electronics cooling, renewable energy applications, and biomedical thermal devices.