A Experimental and Numerical Approach to Evaluate Thermal characteristics a of Heat Pipe

Abstract

Nanofluid as working fluid for the improvement of thermal performance, in case of heat pipe, is the newly emerging area of research. Superior thermal characteristics of nanofluids attracted the researchers towards the application of nanofluid in heat pipes. In present study, a 2D analysis is applied to evaluate the thermal performance of heat pipe having CeO2/H2O nanofluid. The heat transfer analysis of heat pipe having nanofluid (0.5, 1.0, &1.5 wt. % concentration) at operating temperature of 60, 80, 100,& 120°C has been done numerically through CFD simulation and results was compared with the experimental results. The results predicted by numerical analysis show that the application CeO2/H2O nanofluid diminishes the temperature of surface wall and thermal resistance of heat pipe as compared to that of water. The efficiency as well as effective thermal conductivity of the heat pipe increased with the use of CeO2/H2O nanofluid as compared to that of water heat pipe. A good agreement has been observed between experimental and numerical results. The present study concludes that heat pipe using CeO2/H2O nanofluid as working fluid has better heat transfer characteristics than the water.