Laminar natural convection within a tall enclosure of aspect ratio of 5, and subdivided in five compartments by partial partitions (shutters) is studied numerically. The boundaries for the enclosure sidewalls are isothermal, while the partitions, although thin, are of finite thickness, and they participate in the overall convective heat transfer process (conjugate problem). The influence of the partitions’ angle upon the overall Nusselt number is examined for a range of 60° to −60°. The Rayleigh number was varied from 103 to 107. The results are presented in terms of a normalized Nusselt number as a function of the Rayleigh number, and of the partitions’ angle. Particular attention is given to the interaction between the flow entering the cavity and the recirculating flow within the cavity, and to the eventual linkage between adjacent compartments through their thermal and flow conditions.

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