Savitribai Phule Pune University

“HEAT TRANSFER INTENSIFICATION USING NANOFLUIDS”

ABSTRACT

Nanofluids are quasi single phase medium containing stable colloidal dispersion of
ultrafine or nanometric metallic or ceramic particles in a given fluid. Nanofluids possess
immense potential of application to improve heat transfer and energy efficiency in several
areas including vehicular cooling in transportation, power generation, defense, nuclear, space,
microelectronics and biomedical devices. In the present contribution, a brief overview has
been presented to provide an update on the historical evolution of this concept, possible
synthesis routes, level of improvements reported, theoretical understanding of the possible
mechanism of heat conduction by nanofluid and scopes of application. According to this
review, the future developments of these technologies are discussed. In order to put the
nanofluid heat transfer technologies into practice, fundamental studies are greatly needed to
understand the physical mechanisms.

K.K.Wagh Institute of Engineering Education & Research,Nashik

(Mechanical Engineering)
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1.INTRODUCTION
Nanofluids are a new class of fluids engineered by dispersing nanometer-sized materials
(nanoparticles, nanofibers, nanotubes, nanowires, nanorods, nanosheet, or droplets) in base
fluids. In other words, nanofluids are nanoscale colloidal suspensions containing
consendensednanomaterials. They are two-phase systems with one phase (solid phase) in
another (liquid phase). Nanofluids have been found to possess enhanced thermophysical
properties such as thermal conductivity, thermal diffusivity, viscosity and convective heat
transfer coefficients compared to those of base fluids like oil or water. It has demonstrated
great potential applications in many fields. For a two-phase system, there are some important
issues we have to face. One of the most important issues is the stability of nanofluids and it
remains a big challenge to achieve desired stability of nanofluids. In this we will review the
new progress in the methods for preparing stable nanofluids and summarize the stability
mechanisms. In recent years, nanofluids have attracted more and more attention. The main
driving force for nanofluids research lies in a wide range of applications. Although some
review articles involving the progress of nanofluid investigation were published in the past
several years , most of the reviews are concerned on the experimental and theoretical studies
of the thermophysical properties or the convective heat transfer of nanofluids. The purpose of
this seminar will focuses on the new preparation methods and stability mechanisms,
especially the new application trends for nanofluids in addition to the heat transfer properties
of nanofluids. We will try to find some challenging issues that need to be solved for future
research based on the review on these aspects of nanofluids.

Figure :-Nanofluid

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2. PREPARATION OF NANO FLUIDS

2.1 Two-Step Method
Two-step method is the most widely used method for preparing nanofluids. Nanoparticles,
nanofibers, nanotubes or other nanomaterials used in this method are first produced as dry
powders by chemical or physical methods. Then the nanosized powder will be dispersed into
a fluid in the second processing step with the help of intensive magnetic force agitation,
ultrasonic agitation, high-shear mixing, homogenizing and ball milling. Two-step method is
the most economic method to produce nanofluids in large scale, because nanopowder
synthesis techniques have already been scaled up to industrial production levels. Due to the
high surface area and surface activity, nanoparticles have the tendency to aggregate. The
important technique to enhance the stability of nanoparticles in fluids is the use of
surfactants.. Due to the difficulty in preparing stable nanofluids by two-step method, several
advanced techniques are developed to produce nanofluids, including one-step method. In the
following part, we will introduce one-step method in detail.

2.2 One-step method

To reduce the agglomeration of nanoparticles, Choi et al. developed a one-step physical
vapor condensation method to prepare Cu/ethylene glycol nanofluids . The one-step process
consists of simultaneously making and dispersing the particles in the fluid. In this method the
processes of drying, storage, transportation, and dispersion of nanoparticles are avoided, so
the agglomeration of nanoparticles is minimized and the stability of fluids is increased . The
one-step processes can prepare uniformly dispersed nanoparticles and the particles can be
stably suspended in the base fluid. However there are some disadvantages for one-step
method. The most important one is that the residual reactants are left in the nanofluids due to
incomplete reaction or stabilization. It is difficult to elucidate the nanoparticle effect without
eliminating this impurity effect.

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3. MECHANISMS OF HEAT TRANSFER IMPROVEMENT

Apart from the basic reason of improvement in thermal conductivity in nano fluids,
the suspension of nano particles alters the flow behaviour in general.
3.1 Effect of Brownian Motion
It is a seemingly random movement of particles suspended in a liquid or gas and the
motion is due to collisions with base fluid molecules, which makes the particles undergo
random-walk motion. Thus, the Brownian motion intensifies with an increase in temperature
as per the kinetic theory of particles. Some researchers, have suggested that the potential
mechanism for enhancement of thermal conductivity is the transfer of energy due to the
collision of higher temperature particles with lower ones. The effectiveness of the Brownian
motion decreases with an increase in the bulk viscosity

NANOPARTICLE
BASE
FLUID

Figure :- Brownian motion

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3.2 Liquid Layering At The Liquid/Particle Interface

Liquid molecules close to a solid surface are known to form layered structures. The layered
molecules are in an intermediate physical state between a solid and bulk liquid. With these
solid like liquid layers, the nanofluid structure consists of solid nanoparticles, solid-like liquid
layer, and a bulk liquid. The solid-like nanolayer acts as a thermal bridge between a solid
nanoparticle and a bulk liquid and so is key to enhancing thermal conductivity.

NANOPARTICLE
BASE FLUID
MOLECULES Figure:- Liquid layering

3.3 Thermophoresis
Thermophoresis or the Soret effect is a phenomenon observed when a mixture of two
or more types of motile particles (particles able to move) is subjected to the force of a
temperature gradient. The phenomenon is most significant in a natural convection process,
where the flow is driven by buoyancy and temperature. The particles travel in the direction of
decreasing temperature and the process of heat transfer increases with a decrease in the bulk
density.

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3.4 Intensification Of Turbulence

Turbulence refers to the unsteady flow of nanofluids which causes collision between
nanoparticles and thermal interaction takes place between them. Xuan and Li proposed that
the enhancement could also come from intensification of turbulence due to the presence of
the nanoparticles.

Figure:- Turbulence of nanofluids

3.5 Clustering of nano particles
Nanoparticles are known to form clusters. Evans et al. proposed that clustering can
result in fast transport of heat along relatively large distances since heat can be conducted
much faster by solid particles when compared to liquid matrix. This phenomenon is
illustrated schematically in below. It was shown that the effective thermal conductivity
increased with increasing cluster size. However, as particle volume fraction increased, the
nanofluid with clusters showed relatively smaller thermal conductivity enhancement. When it
comes to interfacial resistance, it was found that interfacial resistance decreases the
enhancement in thermal conductivity, but this decrease diminishes for nanofluids with large
clusters.

Figure:- Clustering of nanoparticle

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4. EFFECTS OF SOME PARAMETERS ON THERMAL

CONDUCTIVITY OF NANOFLUIDS

4.1 Particle Volume Fraction

Particle volume fraction is a parameter that is investigated in almost all of the
experimental studies and the results are usually in agreement qualitatively. Most of the
researchers report increasing thermal conductivity with increasing particle volume fraction
and the relation found is usually linear.

4.2 Particle Material

Most of the studies show that particle material is an important parameter that affects
the thermal conductivity of nanofluids. At first glance, it might be thought that the difference
in the thermal conductivities of particle materials is the main reason of this effect.

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4.3 Particle Shape

There are mainly two particle shapes used in nanofluid research; spherical particles
and cylindrical particles. Cylindrical particles usually have a large length-to-diameter ratio.
Nanofluids with carbon nanotubes (which are cylindrical in shape) generally show greater
thermal conductivity enhancement than nanofluids with spherical particles. As a result, one
can conclude that cylindrical nanoparticles provide higher thermal conductivity enhancement
than spherical particles. One of the possible reasons of this is the rapid heat transport along
relatively larger distances in cylindrical particles since cylindrical particles usually have
lengths on the order of micrometers. However, it should be noted that nanofluids with
cylindrical particles usually have much larger viscosities than those with spherical
nanoparticles. As a result, the associated increase in pumping power is large and this reduces
the feasibility of usage of nanofluids with cylindrical particles.

Figure:- Effect of particle shape

4.4 Effect of Acidity (PH)
A significant decrease in thermal conductivity ratio with increasing pH values as
reported in . It was also observed that the rate of change of thermal conductivity with particle
volume fraction was dependent on pH value. Thermal conductivity enhancement of 5 vol. %
Al2O3/water nanofluid was 23% when pH is equal to 2.0 and it became 19% when pH is
equal to 11.5. At the optimum value of pH, surface charge of nanoparticles increases, which
creates repulsive forces between nanoparticles. As a result of this effect, severe clustering of
nanoparticles is prevented (excessive clustering may result in sedimentation, which decreases
thermal conductivity enhancement).

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Figure:- Effect of ph value

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5. APPLICATIONS
5.1 Transportation
Nanofluids have great potentials to improve automotive and heavy-duty engine
cooling rates by increasing the efficiency, lowering the weight and reducing the complexity
of thermal management systems. The improved cooling rates for automotive and truck
engines can be used to remove more heat from higher horsepower engines with the same size
of cooling system. Alternatively, it is beneficial to design more compact cooling system with
smaller and lighter radiators. It is in turn benefit the high performance and high fuel economy
of car and truck. Ethylene glycol based nanofluids have attracted much attention in the
application as engine coolant. The use of high-thermal conductive nanofluids in radiators can
lead to a reduction in the frontal area of the radiator up to 10%. The fuel saving is up to 5%
due to the reduction in aerodynamic drag. It opens the door for new aerodynamic automotive
designs that reduce emissions by lowering drag. The application of nanofluids also
contributed to a reduction of friction and wear, reducing parasitic losses, operation of
components such as pumps and compressors, and subsequently leading to more than 6% fuel
savings. In fact, nanofluids not only enhance the efficiency and economic performance of car
engine, but also will greatly influence the structure design of automotives. For example, the
engine radiator cooled by a nanofluid will be smaller and lighter. It can be placed elsewhere
in the vehicle, allowing for the redesign of a far more aerodynamic chassis. By reducing the
size and changing the location of the radiator, a reduction in weight and wind resistance could
enable greater fuel efficiency and subsequently lower exhaust emissions.

5.2 Heating buildings and reducing pollution

Nanofluids can be applied in the building heating systems. In cold regions, it is a
common practice to use ethylene or propylene glycol mixed with water in different
proportions as a heat transfer fluid. So 60:40 ethylene glcol/water (by weight) was selected as
the base fluid. The results showed that using nanofluids in heat exchangers could reduce
volumetric and mass flow rates, resulting in an overall pumping power savings. Nanofluids
necessitate smaller heating systems, which are capable of delivering the same amount of
thermal energy as larger heating systems, but are less expensive. This lowers the initial
equipment cost excluding nanofluid cost. This will also reduce environmental pollutants
because smaller heating units use less power, and the heat transfer unit has less liquid and
material waste to discard at the end of its life cycle.
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6. CONCLUSION
Nanofluids, that is well-dispersed metallic nanoparticles at high volume fractions in
liquids, enhance the mixture’s thermal conductivity over the base-fluid values. Thus, they are
potentially useful for advanced cooling of micro-systems. This presents an overview of the
recent developments in the study of nanofluids, including the preparation methods, the
evaluation methods for their stability, the ways to enhance their stability, the stability
mechanisms, and their potential applications in heat transfer intensification, mass transfer
enhancement, energy fields, mechanical fields and so for. The performance of nanofluid
critically depends upon the size, quantity (volume percentage), shape and distribution of
dispersoids, and their ability to remain suspended and chemically un-reacted in the fluid.
Still we can conclude that nanofluids thermal conductivity increases with increment in
particle volume fraction and temperature. The chaotic movement of nano particles increases
fluctuation and turbulence of the fluids, which increases the heat exchange process.
Convective heat transfer coefficient is enhanced by increasing the particle concentration and
the Reynolds number. Ill effects of nanofluids like clustering of nanoparticle, coagulation
should be avoided.

K.K.Wagh Institute of Engineering Education & Research,Nashik

(Mechanical Engineering)
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 Savitribai Phule Pune University

7. REFERENCES
1. Kavitha T , Rajendran A, Durairajan A, Shanmugam, ‘Heat transfer enhancement
using nano fluids’, international journal of mechanical engineering and technology,
volume 3, issue 2, may-august(2012), pp. 769-782.

2. Wei Yu, HuaqingXie ‘A review of nanofluids’,.

3. Ganesh Ranakoti, Irtisha, SandhyaDewangan, Siddhartha Kosti, RohanNemade “Heat

transfer enhancement by nanofluids”,.

4. Dr.Dongshengweng “Nanofluids for heat transfer application”,.

5. M.RezaAzizian. “Thermophysical properties of nanofluid”,

K.K.Wagh Institute of Engineering Education & Research,Nashik

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