Hydromagnetic boundary layer in a converging flow with magnetic field perpendicular to the wall

An investigation has been made into the laminar incompre--ssible boundary layer of a fluid of small electrical conductivity over the initial length of a wall placed along a radial streamline in a converging flow (sink flow) in the presence of an externally applied uniform transverse magnetic field. It has been assumed that the magnetic Reynolds number is small and the induced magnetic field has been neglected in comparison with the externally applied magnetic field. The momentum and the kinetic energy integral equations and the wall compatibility condition have been used with the aid of a singly infinite family of velocity profiles to obtain a numerical step-by-step solution. The results show how the boundary layer thickness develops from zero at the leading edge to the asymptotic state values in the downstream direction. With increasing strength of the magnetic field the boundary layer thickness is seen to decrease. (author)