MHD boundary layer flow of SWCNT‐water and MWCNT‐water nanofluid over a vertical cone with heat generation/absorption

The analysis is carried out to investigate the magneto hydro dynamics (MHD) boundary layer flow, heat and mass transfer characteristics of two carbon nanotubes, namely, single‐wall carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) and multiwall carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs), with water as the base fluid by taking thermal radiation and chemical reaction into consideration. Suitable similarity conversions are employed to reduce nonlinear partial differential equations into the system of ordinary differential equations, and these equations together with boundary conditions are solved numerically using the finite element method. Velocity, temperature, and concentration distributions as well as skin friction coefficient, Nusselt number, and Sherwood number for diverse values of influencing parameters are examined in detail, and the results are displayed graphically and in tabular form. It is found that the rate of heat transfer ( − θ ′ ( 0 ) ) is remarkably higher in water‐based MWCNTs than the SWCNTs as the value of the nanoparticle volume fraction parameter ( φ ) rises in the boundary layer regime.