This study examines the magnetohydrodynamic flow and thermal characteristics of a \(Cu\, - \,ZrO_{2}\) / \(EG - H_{2} O\) hybrid nanofluid across two configurations: a wedge surface and a flat plate. The analysis includes the impacts of thermal radiation, porous medium characteristics, internal heat generation, and the Weissenberg number. The main objective is to assess how these physical parameters alter the velocity profiles, temperature distributions, entropy generation rates, skin-friction coefficients, and Nusselt numbers for both geometric configurations. To verify the precision of the solutions, the nonlinear boundary-layer equations are transformed into similarity forms and resolved utilizing the Runge–Kutta shooting method and the Homotopy Perturbation Method (HPM). Quantitative findings demonstrate that thermal radiation and heat-source parameters raise the temperature by 14–18% for the wedge and 20–25% for the plate, while magnetic characteristics raise the Nusselt number by roughly 10–17%. In the wedge, porosity reduces skin friction by up to 7%, whereas in the plate, it rises by 5%. As the Weissenberg number climbs, entropy generation increases by 12–15% in the wedge and 8–10% in the plate. The model and techniques utilized are confirmed to be reliable, as HPM and numerical results show acceptable agreement with variations below 0.12%. The presented hybrid nanofluid model demonstrates significant applicability in solar thermal energy systems, where enhanced heat transfer is critical to improving collector efficiency. The synergistic effect of magnetic fields and radiation enhances the thermal efficiency of high-temperature solar devices.
