Simulation Modelling Practice and Theory 54 (2015) 1–18

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Simulation Modelling Practice and Theory

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/simpat

Three-dimensional simulations of MHD generator coupling

with outer resistance circuit
Z.Y. Huang, Y.J. Liu ⇑, Z.Y. Wang, J. Cai
School of Mechanical and Automotive Engineering, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510641, China

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: The authors conduct fully-developed three-dimensional numerical simulations of a MHD
Received 12 April 2014 generator coupling with outer resistance circuit. Instead of considering the MHD generator
Received in revised form 7 February 2015 as a constant voltage source or a constant flow source, a simple and effective iteration is
Accepted 17 February 2015
provided and successfully practiced to simulate the interaction between the MHD gen-
Available online 13 March 2015
erator and the outer circuit so that they obey the Ohm’s Law and the Kirchhoff’s Law with
sufficient accuracy set by user. The objective of this research is to have more detailed
Keywords:
knowledge of the characteristics of MHD generators with incompressible medium, includ-
MHD generator
Outer resistance circuit
ing the spatial variances of velocity and electromagnetic variables. In the calculations, two
Three-dimensional simulation significant non-dimensional parameters Hac and Rec, whose influences on velocity and
Incompressible medium electromagnetic variables are elaborately discussed, are deduced from the governing equa-
tions. In general, Hac, proportional to the applied magnetic field, has negative effects on the
variables discussed but Rec, corresponding to the driven pressure, has opposite effects.
Ó 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction

MHD generators are high-efficiency power conversion devices, which were originally presented by Faraday. Kinetic energy
of conducting gas or liquid is directly transformed into electric energy without any rotational machinery, which reduces abra-
sion and maintenance cost of the equipment compared with traditional generators. However, MHD power generation, like
other MHD applications, is a complex process where fluid field and electromagnetic field couple together and depend on each
other. The motion of MHD fluid interacts with the applied magnetic field and generates Lorentz force which affects the fluid
motion in reverse. For better design and application of MHD generators, it is significant to deeply understand the
characteristics of MHD fluid motion. A number of simulations have been conducted by researchers from various areas, in
which they tried to figure out properties of MHD fluid including hydrodynamic stability of MHD fluid in rectangular duct with
different boundary conditions [1,2], motion of MHD fluid in rectangular duct and pipe with external magnetic field under
laminar or turbulent flow regime [3–5], non-Newtonian property of MHD fluid [6,7] and MHD flow with free surface [8,9].
Although Ref. [1–9] have provided practical numerical schemes to deal with the partial differential equations of MHD,
determination of boundary conditions for both conductive and insulting walls and reasonable assumptions for problem
simplification, the discussions about electromagnetic variables are not as adequate as those of fluid motion. The MHD flows
discussed in Ref. [1–9] are considered to be an isolated system without power extraction. However, power extraction is
common working condition of MHD generators so not only the interaction between fluid field and electromagnetic field
but also the interaction between MHD generators and outer circuits should be taken into consideration. Jackson has deduced

⇑ Corresponding author. Tel.: +86 13640338486.

E-mail address: yajun@scut.edu.cn (Y.J. Liu).

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.simpat.2015.02.006
1569-190X/Ó 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
2 Z.Y. Huang et al. / Simulation Modelling Practice and Theory 54 (2015) 1–18

Nomenclature

Vectors
!
V
!
velocity vector of MHD fluid (m/s)
V non-dimensional velocity vector of MHD fluid
!
J induced ampere density (A/m2)
!
J non-dimensional ampere density
!
B0 applied magnetic field (T)
!
B
!
magnetic field in MHD generator (T)
B non-dimensional magnetic field
!
E
!
induced electric field (V/m)
E non-dimensional electric field

Scales
p pressure in MHD generator (Pa)

p non-dimensional pressure in MHD generator
/ potential (V)

/ non-dimensional potential
 ; v ; w
u  non-dimensional velocity component of x, y, z axis correspondingly
L length of the channel (mm)
d width of the channel (mm)
h height of the channel (mm)
U referential velocity (m/s)
v y component of velocity (mm/s)
fy y component of magnetic force per mass (N/kg)
v oltage voltage of outer circuit (V)
I current of outer circuit (A)
R resistance of outer circuit (X)

Greek symbols
q density of MHD fluid (kg/m3)
l dynamic viscosity of MHD fluid (Pa s)
r conductivity of MHD fluid (S/m)

the analytical expressions of the liquid–metal MHD generator with slug flow assumption that the velocity is uniform over
the cross section of channel. His results indicate that the MHD generator is a constant voltage source [10]. Zhao et al. have
provided an equivalent circuit model which considers MHD generator as a constant flow source. Through comparing with
their experimental data, this model appears a better accuracy than the constant voltage source model [11]. Quasi-one-di-
mensional conservation equations coupling with power transmission have been applied on disk MHD generators and inves-
tigated by Ishikawa et al. [12,13]. In Refs. [14–16] proposed by Aithal, the interaction between the MHD generator and the
outer circuit is described by the Ohm’s Law and the MHD medium is considered as inviscid fluid with quasi-one-dimensional
assumption. Ref. [17] focuses on effects of magnetic field distribution on MHD generators’ efficiency. Ref [18] considers the
interaction between MHD generators and outer circuits via the Kirchhoff’s Laws but details of fluid field and electromagnetic
field have not been provided. Ref. [19] uses Large Eddy Simulation (LES) to simulate MHD generators and intensively discuss-
es the characteristics of MHD turbulence while details of electromagnetic field and methods to deal with the interaction
between the generator and the outer resistance have not been clearly provided.
Simplifications that the viscosity of fluid is ignored and that the dimensions of the problem are reduced are commonly
used in simulations of MHD generators, leading to differences from realistic situations. Three-dimensional simulations are
necessary to give more elaborate information of MHD generators. The physical essence of MHD generators is the MHD flow
with power extraction. Power extraction gives additional constraint to the MHD flow, which is equivalently the interaction
between generators and outer circuits. Considering a MHD generator as a constant voltage or a constant flow source in pre-
vious works may be unable to truly reflect the interaction between MHD generator and outer circuit. In our simulation, the
Ohm’s Law and the Kirchhoff’s Law are implemented to combine the MHD generator and the outer resistance circuit as a
whole system so that more precise results can be obtained. The mechanism of this interaction is analyzed based on the gov-
erning equations and the boundary conditions. An iterative method is established and successfully practiced to numerically
deal with the interaction between the generator and the outer circuit. General discussions are based on two non-dimensional
parameters which have the form of Reynolds number and Hartmann number respectively. Detailed discussions about fluid
 Z.Y. Huang et al. / Simulation Modelling Practice and Theory 54 (2015) 1–18 3

motion and electromagnetic distributions of the MHD generator coupling with outer circuit will be greatly beneficial for not
only designing but also improving the generator.
A three-dimensional simulation which takes the viscosity of incompressible liquid medium into consideration is conducted.
The MHD channel used is a straight rectangular duct with a pair of face-to-face conductive walls and a pair of insulting walls.
Outer resistance circuit is coupled with the generator. The flow we consider is fully-developed, time-invariant and pressure
gradient driven. In Section 2, definition of the generator is illustrated and the problem is stated with some reasonable assump-
tions. In Section 3, the governing equations and the boundary conditions including the outer resistance circuit are described in
detail. The interaction between MHD generator and outer resistance circuit is analyzed. Two non-dimensional parameters Rec
and Hac which have great influences on characteristics of MHD generator are deduced. In Section 4, the numerical methods and
the material properties used are described. Instead of considering a MHD generator as a constant voltage source or a constant
flow source, a simple and effective iteration is provided to simulate the interaction between MHD generator and outer circuit so
that MHD generator and outer circuit obey the Ohm’s Law and the Kirchhoff’s Law with sufficient accuracy set by user. In
Section 5, the velocity field and the electromagnetic field are discussed in detailed, including the influences of Hac and Rec, for-
mation of the velocity profiles, eddy current and other characteristics of MHD generator.

2. Problem statement

The MHD generator is a straight channel with homogeneous rectangle cross section which is shown in Fig. 1. The coordi-
nate system is installed in the left bottom of the cross section, located at the entrance of the channel. The dimensions are L, d
and h corresponding to the length, width and height of the channel. The two walls perpendicular to the x axis are assumed to
be perfect electrical conductors and the others which are perpendicular to the z axis are assumed to be perfect insulators. A
homogeneous magnetic field with a constant magnitude B0 and with an orientation paralleled to the z axis is applied on and
filled with the channel. The load of the generator is reasonable to be considered as a resistance because the output of the gen-
erator is direct current when the steady state is taken into account. The effects of capacitance and inductance appear under
transient state and become open circuit and short circuit respectively under steady state. Neither open circuit nor short circuit
is normal working condition of the generator, so they are not considered here. The resistance is connected on the two conduc-
tive walls respectively. When the liquid medium flows into the channel under interaction with the applied magnetic field, the
conductive walls will produce potential difference. Therefore, current will go through the resistance and electric energy gen-
erates. To liquid mediums, the velocity is relatively low and the Magnetic Reynolds number is generally much less than 1
!
(Rem  1) so the induced magnetic field can be negligible [1,2] which means the magnetic field B in the generator is the same
!
as the applied magnetic field B0 . In addition, the flow considered is assumed to be time-invariant and fully-developed.

3. Governing equations

As the medium we study is liquid which is convincible to be considered as incompressible fluid with constant density and
dynamic viscosity, it is appropriate to use the incompressible Navier–Stokes equations with the equation of continuity
(Eq. (1)) and the momentum equation (Eq. (2)),

z z Conductors
h

o y o x
L
Insulators
o
y z R

B0
d

y
Flow
x o
x
Fig. 1. The physical model of the MHD generator.
4 Z.Y. Huang et al. / Simulation Modelling Practice and Theory 54 (2015) 1–18

!
rV ¼0 ð1Þ

!
@V ! ! 1 l ! 1! !
þ ðV rÞ V ¼  rp þ r2 V þ J  B ð2Þ
@t q q q
!
where V is the velocity vector, q is the density of the MHD fluid, l is the dynamic viscosity of the MHD fluid, p is the pressure,
! !
B is the magnetic field, and J is the induced ampere density.

Table 1
The relationships between dimensional variables and non-dimensional variables.

 ¼ yL ; z ¼ Lz
x ¼ xL ; y
  ¼ Lr
r t ¼ t
L=U
! ¼ p !
!
p !

B ¼ BB0 qU 2 V ¼ UV
¼ / ! ! ! !
/ J
B0 UL E ¼ UBE 0 J ¼ rUB 0

Table 2
The material properties of the fluid.

Density q 1:08  103 kg=m3

Electrical conductivity r 3:2 S=m
Dynamic viscosity l 1  103 Pa  s

Fig. 2. Numerical scheme of the simulation.

 Z.Y. Huang et al. / Simulation Modelling Practice and Theory 54 (2015) 1–18 5

! ! !
The term J  B is considered as the magnetic force applied on the fluid and the induced ampere density J yields the gen-
eralized Ohm’ Law
! ! ! !
J ¼ rðE þ V  B Þ ð3Þ
!
where r is the conductivity of the MHD fluid and E is the induced electric field.
According to the Maxwell equations, the induced electric field has relationship with the potential.
!
E ¼ r/ ð4Þ
where / is the potential. It would be much more convenient to determine the boundary conditions after using the variable /.
Charge conservation is another factor that should be considered, which is validated by the equation
!
r J ¼0 ð5Þ
After simplifying and combining the five governing equations above (Eqs. (1)–(5)), the governing equations reduce to
three with non-dimensional form for convenient calculation and discussion.

!
 V ¼0
r ð6Þ

!
! !
@V  Þ V ¼ r
p 1 2! /
! ! !
 þ V  BÞ  B
þ ðV  r þ r V þNðr ð7Þ
@t Rec
! !
 2/
r   VB
 ¼r ð8Þ

qffiffiffiffiffi qffiffiffi
Hac2 rB20 L
where Rec ¼ qlUL, U ¼ pin r
q , Hac ¼ B0 L l and N ¼ Rec ¼ qU . U is the referential velocity, pin is the pressure at the entrance, L is
the length of the channel and B0 is the strength of the applied magnetic field. It is noted that the referential velocity is a func-
tion of the pressure at entrance from dimensional analysis so the Reynolds number Rec defined here is linked to the pressure
at entrance which drives the fluid to move.

Fig. 3. The change of the distribution of velocity with different Hac values, (from left to right, up to down, Hac = 0, 25, 50, 100, 250, 500).
6 Z.Y. Huang et al. / Simulation Modelling Practice and Theory 54 (2015) 1–18

The variables and operators with superscript ‘‘–’’ are the non-dimensional symbols. The relationships between dimen-
sional variables and non-dimensional variables are listed in Table 1.

3.1. Boundary conditions

3.1.1. Boundary conditions of velocity

On the walls of the channel, impermeable and no-sliding conditions are determined and expressed as

 walls ¼ v walls ¼ w
u  walls ¼ 0 ð9Þ
!
where u; v
 and w
 is the components of the vector V corresponding to the x, y and z axis relatively. The boundary conditions of
the entrance and exit of the channel are determined by the continuity equation.
   
@ v @ v
 in ¼ u
u out ¼ w
 in ¼ w
 out ¼ ¼ ¼0 ð10Þ
@y  in @y  out

3.1.2. Boundary conditions of pressure

Movement of the fluid is driven by pressure gradient, so the value of pressure is specified as constant at the entrance and
exit of the channel. On the walls, the normal directional derivative of pressure is considered as zero according to the
requirement of projection method [20–21] which is the numerical algorithm used.

(a) x =5mm

(b) z =5mm
Fig. 4. The profiles of the velocity in the middle section (x = 5 mm or z = 5 mm) with varying Hac.
 Z.Y. Huang et al. / Simulation Modelling Practice and Theory 54 (2015) 1–18 7

 

@p
in ¼ 1;
p out ¼ 0;
p ¼0 ð11Þ
@n walls

3.1.3. Boundary conditions of potential

On the walls, the induced ampere density is expressed as Eq. (12) according to the no-sliding velocity boundary condition.
!        
@/ @/ @/
J ¼  ; ; ð12Þ
walls @ x walls  walls
@y @ z walls
On the insulating walls which are paralleled to the x axis and located by the z axis, the ampere density on the normal
direction (which is parallel to the z axis) is zero, which means

ðJ z Þz¼0 ¼ ðJ z Þz¼h ¼ 0 ð13Þ

L

in other words
   
@/ @/
¼ ¼0 ð14Þ
@z z¼0 @ z z¼h
L

(a) x =5mm

(b) z =5mm
Fig. 5. The profiles of the magnetic force in the middle section (x = 5 mm or z = 5 mm) with varying Hac.
8 Z.Y. Huang et al. / Simulation Modelling Practice and Theory 54 (2015) 1–18

On the conductive walls which are paralleled to the z axis and located by the x axis, the potential is constant since con-
ductors are equipotential body. It means that the ampere density on the conductive walls is zero on the tangential direction.
However what we really concern is the potential difference between two conductive walls so the left conductive wall is set
to be potential reference.
  ¼0
ð/Þ ð15Þ
x¼0

  d ¼ PHI
ð/Þ ð16Þ
x¼
L

where PHI is a variable specified by the interaction between MHD generator and outer circuit and it will be discussed later.
At the entrance and exit of the channel, the flow is fully developed so the boundary condition of the potential is
   
@/ @/
¼ ¼ 0: ð17Þ
 y¼0
@y  y¼1
@y

3.1.4. Interaction between MHD generator and outer circuit

MHD generator produces voltage and current on outer circuit. When motion of the fluid is steady, the output voltage and
current are steady as well. Because the load is considered as a resistance, the outer circuit obeys the Ohm’s Law. The voltage
of the resistance is the potential difference between the two conductive walls because the resistance directly connects the
conductive walls respectively. So the voltage of the outer circuit is

(a) x =5mm

(b) z =5mm
Fig. 6. The profiles of the potential in the middle section (x = 5 mm or z = 5 mm) with varying Hac.
 Z.Y. Huang et al. / Simulation Modelling Practice and Theory 54 (2015) 1–18 9

voltage ¼ B0 ULðPHI  0Þ ¼ B0 UL  PHI ð18Þ

According to the Kirchhoff’s current Law, the current in generator is equal to the current in the outer circuit. So the rela-
tionship between the ampere density on the conductive walls and the current of the outer circuit can be written as
ZZ
I¼ ðJ x Þx¼d dydz: ð19Þ
conductive
wall

According to the Ohm’s Law,

voltage ¼ IR; ð20Þ

which means
ZZ
R
PHI ¼ ðJ x Þx¼d dydz ð21Þ
B0 UL
conductive
wall

where R is the value of the outer resistance. Eq. (21) reflects the interaction between MHD generator and outer resistance
circuit. Moreover it specifies the value of potential PHI on the conductive wall. The outer resistance circuit affects the gen-
erator by its influence on the boundary conditions.

(a) x =5mm

(b) z =5mm
Fig. 7. The profiles of the electric field (x component) in the middle section (x = 5 mm or z = 5 mm) with varying Hac.
10 Z.Y. Huang et al. / Simulation Modelling Practice and Theory 54 (2015) 1–18

3.2. Analyses

The MHD generator coupling with outer resistance circuit seems to be adequately solved with the governing equations
and the boundary conditions. However, a difficulty of determining the boundary condition PHI appears. Value of PHI is pre-
requisite for solving the potential equation (Eq. (8)) but it is unknown before all the variables are solved. This difficulty is
caused by the interaction between the MHD generator and the outer resistance circuit, which implies that the fluid motion
and the outer circuit are not isolated and that the variables in the generator and in the outer circuit should be solved simul-
taneously. In order to overcome this difficulty, a virtual working process of the MHD generator is qualitatively considered
with the assumption that the MHD generator experiences lots of different quasi-static sates before it works appropriately.
For example, if the load of the generator or equivalently in our situation, the resistance changes, a new potential difference
between the two conductive walls occurs according to the Ohm’s Law, which implies that the boundary condition of the
potential changes. We further assume that the effect of the outer circuit on the generator temporarily disappears until
the generator reaches a new quasi-static state under the new boundary conditions. Then a new current appears and produces
another potential difference. This process keeps running until the new potential difference and the new current match the
Ohm’s Law (Eq. (21)). Finally the generator reaches the appropriate steady state. A numerical iteration method, which is
inspired by the above consideration and successfully practiced, will be introduced in Section 4 in detailed.
After observing the governing equations, two main non-dimensional parameters Rec and Hac, which are Reynolds num-
ber and Hartmann number with velocity scale U and length scale L, have effects on the results of the equations under specific
boundary conditions. In addition, these two parameters are the bridge between the non-dimensional variables and the

(a) x =5mm

(b) z =5mm
Fig. 8. The profiles of the ampere density (x component) in the middle section (x = 5 mm or z = 5 mm) with varying Hac.
 Z.Y. Huang et al. / Simulation Modelling Practice and Theory 54 (2015) 1–18 11

dimensional variables which have actual physical interpretations. According to the definition of the parameters
qffiffiffiffiffi qffiffiffi
Rec ¼ qlUL ¼ qlL pqin and Hac ¼ B0 L rl, the referential velocity U as well as the driven pressure (pin ¼ qU 2 ) and the magnitude
of the applied magnetic field B0 are specified when Rec and Hac are given with the dimension of the generator and the mate-
rial properties of the MHD fluid. So Rec and Hac implicitly represent the driven pressure and the applied magnetic field
respectively in non-dimensional form.

4. Numerical schemes

To actuate a numerical simulation of MHD generator, the MHD fluid used as well as its material properties should be spe-
cified at first. The model provided is suitable for conducting fluids which coincide with the incompressibility and low-Rem
assumptions stated in Section 2, for instance liquid metal and electrolyte solution. As an example, dilute cupric sulfate aque-
ous solution whose concentration is 0.5 mol/L is chosen. Its material properties [22] used in calculations are listed in Table2.
Since the model provided is non-dimensional and the discussions in Section 5 are based on two non-dimensional parameters
Hac and Rec, the choice of fluid will not loss generality.
The dimension of the MHD generator is 50  10  10 mm corresponding to the length L, the width d and the height h of
! !
the channel. The magnetic field in the channel B is equal to the applied magnetic field B0 , so the non-dimensional magnetic
!
field B is the vector f0; 0; 1g. Parameters Rec and Hac are set artificially. Therefore the referential velocity U as well as the
entrance pressure, and the magnitude of the applied magnetic field B0 are adjusted by Rec and Hac correspondingly. The
resistance R in the outer circuit is 2:083X.

(a) x =5mm

(b) z =5mm
Fig. 9. The profiles of the velocity and the magnetic force in the middle section (x = 5 mm or z = 5 mm) when Rec = Hac = 100.
12 Z.Y. Huang et al. / Simulation Modelling Practice and Theory 54 (2015) 1–18

The Naiver–Stokes equations (Eqs. 6 and 7) with boundary conditions (Eqs. (9)–(11)) are calculated through projection
method with staggered meshes [20–21] and the potential equation (Eq. (8)) with boundary conditions (Eqs. (14)–(17)) is cal-
culated through Gauss–Seidel iteration. We consider that the equation of continuity is satisfied under the condition
!
 V < 106 .
r
To simulate the interaction between the MHD generator and the outer circuit (Eq. (21) is satisfied), iteration similar to the
virtual working process discussed in Section 3.2 is put forward. An arbitrary value of PHI is specified at first and the Navier–
Stocks equations and potential equation are calculated so that the ampere density on conductive walls as well as the current
of the outer circuit (Eq. (19)) is determined. The error variable
IR
er ¼ 1  : ð22Þ
B0 UL  PHI
evaluates the mismatch of Eq. (21). If jerj is less than the accuracy set by user (the accuracy we set is 5  103 ), the Eq. (21) is
satisfied with sufficient accuracy and the MHD generator is working in an appropriate condition. Otherwise a new value of
PHI will be set as
PHI ¼ kPHI þ ð1  kÞIR=B0 UL; 0 < k 6 1; ð23Þ

(a) The contour of the induced ampere density

( x component) on x =10mm

( b) The profile of the induced ampere density

( x component) on x=10mm
Fig. 10. The profiles of the Jx on the conductive walls when Rec = Hac = 100.
 Z.Y. Huang et al. / Simulation Modelling Practice and Theory 54 (2015) 1–18 13

and the governing equations (Eqs. (6)–(8)) are calculated again until jerj satisfied the accuracy. Parameter k can be consid-
ered as a relaxing factor and its value is suggested to be 0.7. After approximately 4 iterative times, jerj is less than 5  103
and the numerical simulation is finished. The numerical scheme is illustrated in Fig. 2.

5. Results and discussion

As analyzed in Section 3.2, parameter Rec influences the results through entrance pressure which drives the fluid to move
and parameter Hac influences them via the applied magnetic field when the dimension of the generator and the material
properties of the fluid are invariant. So in this section, how these parameters Hac and Rec have effects on the MHD generator
will be discussed.

5.1. Influences of parameter Hac

With a constant Rec = 100, the velocity fields, the potentials, the x components of the electric fields and the x components
of the ampere densities under different values of Hac are acquired. Fig. 3 shows the change of the velocity distributions as
parameter Hac gradually increases from zero to five hundred.
When the magnitude of the applied magnetic field is zero (equivalently Hac is equal to 0), the motion of the fluid is the
same as that of the ordinary incompressible fluid with a similar paraboloid of revolution. More clearly, profiles of the velo-
cities in the middle section (x = 5 mm or z = 5 mm) are shown in Fig. 4. As parameter Hac increases, the fluid velocity

(a) x =5mm

(b) z =5mm
Fig. 11. The profiles of the velocity in the middle section (x = 5 mm or z = 5 mm) with varying Rec.
14 Z.Y. Huang et al. / Simulation Modelling Practice and Theory 54 (2015) 1–18

obviously decreases, which implies that the magnetic force applying on the fluid is obstructive. The velocity gradient close to
the insulating walls (z = 0 mm and z = 10 mm) increases rapidly and the shape of the velocity tends to be semi-pillar. The
velocities become homogeneous in z direction and the curvatures of them are getting smooth in x direction.
Magnetic force has great influence on velocity and it directly relates to electric energy output which is a portion of the
work done by magnetic force. So it is essential to consider how the Hac value, which corresponds to the applied magnetic
field in our study, has impact on magnetic force. The middle sections of the magnetic force are shown in Fig. 5.
As parameter Hac varies, the shape of the magnetic force does not change a lot in both x and z direction. The absolute
value is lower at the boundary and relatively higher in the middle of the channel. As Hac increases, the magnetic force
increases, becomes more homogeneous in distribution and tends to converge despite of the decline of the velocity. When
Hac equates to 250 and 500, it is obvious that the values of these magnetic forces are almost the same, excluding the values
of these magnetic forces whose positions are close to the walls of the channel. With small Hac, the magnetic force near the
insulating walls is positive and it turns into negative with sufficiently large value of Hac. These results convey the following
information. When the dimension of the generator and the material properties of the fluid are invariant, with small applied
magnetic field, a large portion of the magnetic energy is saved while the rest turns into the kinetic energy of the fluid. In
contrast, all magnetic energy is saved with sufficiently large applied magnetic field.
Potential is another variable we concern, since it directly relates to the voltage of the outer circuit, which is an important
parameter for a generator. The profiles of the potential in the middle section of the channel are illustrated in Fig. 6.
The shape of the potential is similar to a cubic curve in x direction and relatively uniform in z direction. When the value of
Hac increases, the convergence still exists since the gaps between the two adjacent curves become smaller. The value of Hac
has little effects on the shape of the profiles but it homogenizes the difference and lowers the voltage of the outer circuit. In
other words, the voltage of the outer circuit will decrease, opposite to the variance of the strength of the applied magnetic

(a) x =5mm

(b) z =5mm
Fig. 12. The profiles of the magnetic force in the middle section (x = 5 mm or z = 5 mm) with varying Rec.
 Z.Y. Huang et al. / Simulation Modelling Practice and Theory 54 (2015) 1–18 15

field when the driven pressure, the dimensions of the generator and the material properties of the fluid are specified. The
negative effects resulting from the reduction of velocity exceed the positive effects produced by increment of applied mag-
netic field, so the voltage decreases.
The x component of electric field Ex and the x component of ampere density J x are concerned, for they are related to the
current in the outer circuit. The profiles of Ex and J x in the middle section of the channel are illustrated in Figs. 7 and 8.
As Hac increases, the absolute values of the electric field Ex and the ampere density J x become lower and more homoge-
neous. Convergence occurs as well, similar to that of the magnetic force and the potential. The shape of the x component of
the electric field is quadratic-like in x direction and the ampere density is bowl-like shape in z direction. When value of Hac is
lower, there is negative ampere density near the insulating walls (z = 0 mm and z = 10 mm), leading to appearance of eddy
current close to the insulating walls. The eddy current will disappear when Hac is sufficiently large. From Figs. 7 and 8, with
sufficiently large Hac value which is proportional to the applied magnetic field in our study, the x component of the electric
field Ex and the ampere density J x are reasonable to be considered as spatial invariances in the channel while with low Hac
value, the spatial variances of them are apparent.
Take the case (Rec = 100 and Hac = 100) as an example to discuss the formation of the velocity profiles and the charac-
teristics of the x component of the ampere density on the conductive walls (x = 0 mm and x = 10 mm).
Fig. 9 illustrates the profiles of the velocity and the magnetic force at the same figure. Magnetic force is the factor that
causes the different distribution between magnetic fluid and ordinary fluid. The magnetic force has negative effects on
the fluid motion in wide range of the channel and positive effects near the insulating walls (with relatively small Hac value).

(a) x =5mm

(b) z =5mm
Fig. 13. The profiles of the potential in the middle section (x = 5 mm or z = 5 mm) with varying Rec.
16 Z.Y. Huang et al. / Simulation Modelling Practice and Theory 54 (2015) 1–18

It leads to the semi-pillar shape in the middle of the channel and large velocity gradient close to the insulating walls
(z = 0 mm and z = 10 mm).
The x component of the ampere density Jx on the conductive walls (x = 0 mm and x = 10 mm) directly relates to the cur-
rent of the outer circuit. So we will discuss the profiles of the ampere density on the conductive walls.
The contour of the induced ampere density (x component) on the conductive walls (x = 0 mm and x = 10 mm) is illustrat-
ed in Fig. 10. It is obvious that the ampere density gathers in the middle of the conductive walls and gradually reduces sym-
metrically when close to the insulating walls. The ampere density is totally positive, which contributes to the current of the
outer circuit. A more clear shape of the profile through the z axis is shown in Fig. 10(b). The ampere density through the z axis
is parabola-like shape.

5.2. Influences of parameter Rec

As discussed in the previous section, parameter Rec directly relates to the driven pressure at the entrance of the channel
when the dimension of the generator and the material properties of the fluid are invariant. Under a constant value of para-
meter Hac = 100 with different values of Rec, we consider the spatial variances of the velocity, the magnetic force, the poten-
tial, the x component of the electric field and the x component of the ampere density. The profiles in the middle section of the
channel are shown in Figs. 11–15. Generally, the shapes of the profiles of the entire variables discussed vary little as Rec val-
ue varies.
It is obvious that the velocity and its gradient increase as parameter Rec increases. It is bowl-like shape in z direction with
a uniform value in the middle and cone-like shape in x direction. It is reasonable that the increment of Rec corresponding to
driven pressure in our calculation causes the velocity increment.

(a) x =5mm

(b) z =5mm
Fig. 14. The profiles of the electric field (x component) in the middle section (x = 5 mm or z = 5 mm) with varying Rec.
 Z.Y. Huang et al. / Simulation Modelling Practice and Theory 54 (2015) 1–18 17

(a) x =5mm

(b) z =5mm
Fig. 15. The profiles of the ampere density (x component) in the middle section (x = 5 mm or z = 5 mm) with varying Rec.

In Fig. 12, the magnetic force relates to the velocity and the magnitude of the applied magnetic field. The increment of
velocity leads to the increase of magnetic force correspondingly with a constant applied magnetic field. The magnetic force
is homogeneous in x direction and bowl-like shape in z direction. The maximum absolute value is uniform at the middle of
the channel. Unlike Hac, the increment of Rec enlarges the positive magnetic force close to insulting walls (z = 0 mm and
z = 10 mm).
The potential difference gets larger and its spatial variance is more obvious as Rec increases, which means the voltage of
the outer circuit increases as well. With constant applied magnetic field, pressure gradient is beneficial for increasing the
voltage of the outer circuit. This phenomenon matches the rising of the ampere density Jx (Fig. 15) as well as the current
of the outer circuit.
The spatial variance of the electric field Ex is quadratic-like shape and is more violent as Rec increases. It is obvious that
! !
the term V  B has a much greater influence on the value of the ampere density J x than that of the induced electric field Ex
(see Eq. (3) and compare with Fig. 15).
The shape of the induced ampere density profiles is similar to that of the magnetic force but inverse. The negative value of
the ampere density close to the insulating walls (z = 0 mm and z = 10 mm) enlarges as Rec increases, which means the
strength of the eddy current gets larger as well. The current of the outer circuit enlarges as it is the integral of the ampere
density J x .
Another interesting character in Figs. 11–15 is that the curves intersect at the point where the value of the variable is zero,
despite of the changes of Rec. This character does not appear when parameter Hac changes. In other words, parameter Rec
influences the value of the variables but not the distributions while Hac influences both the value and the distributions of the
variables. Parameter Rec applies both on the term of viscous force and the term of magnetic force according to the governing
18 Z.Y. Huang et al. / Simulation Modelling Practice and Theory 54 (2015) 1–18

equation (Eq. (7)) so the weight between viscous force and magnetic force does not change as Rec varies. Parameter Hac
applies only on magnetic force leading to changes of the weight between viscous force and magnetic force as Hac varies.

6. Conclusions

In this study, the time-invariant fully-developed incompressible flow in MHD generator is simulated with numerical
method. The MHD generator couples with outer resistance circuit and interacts with outer circuit via potential boundary
condition. Instead of considering the MHD generator as a constant voltage source or a constant flow source, a simple and
effective iteration is provided and successfully practiced to simulate the interaction between the MHD generator and the
outer circuit so that they obey the Ohm’s Law and the Kirchhoff’s Law with sufficient accuracy set by user.
Two significant non-dimensional parameters Rec corresponding to driven pressure and Hac proportional to the magni-
tude of applied magnetic field are defined. How these two parameters affect the velocity field, the magnetic force, the poten-
tial, the x component of the induced electric field and the x component of the ampere density is discussed in detail. In general
Hac has negative effects on the variables discussed while Rec has opposite effects. Eddy current occurs near the insulting
walls when the value of Hac is relatively low and disappears when Hac is sufficiently large. However, the growth of Rec
intensifies the strength of eddy current. Parameter Rec influences the values of the variables but not the distributions while
Hac influences both the values and the distributions of the variables. Explanations for the differences caused by the variance
of parameters Hac and Rec are given through the governing equations. Change of Hac and Rec has different effects on the
weight between viscous force and magnetic force.

Appendix A. Supplementary data

Supplementary data associated with this article can be found, in the online version, at http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.simpat.
2015.02.006.

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