Exploitation of Thermal Properties of Fluids Embedded with Nanostructured Materials

Abstract

Nanofluids are new class of heat transfer fluids developed by suspending nano-sized solid particles in liquids. Larger thermal conductivity of solid particles compared to the base fluid such as water, ethylene Glycol, engine oil etc. significantly enhances its thermal properties. Many of phenomenological models have been proposed to explain the heat transfer enhancement in nanofluids. This paper presents systematic literature survey to exploit several characteristic behaviors of nanofluids viz; increase in thermal conductivity, and heat transfer coefficient. An empirical correlation for Al₂O₃ + water and Cu + water nanofluids to evaluate Thermal conductivity and Nusselt number in forced convective internal flow are developed considering the effect of temperature, volume fraction and size of nanoparticle. The improvement in thermophysical characteristics combined with better heat transfer properties makes fluids embedded with nanomaterials as excellent for future applications.