Boundary Layer Flow and Heat Transfer of FMWCNT/Water Nanofluids over a Flat Plate

Mohammad Safaei,Amin Kamyar,Goodarz Ahmadi,S Kazi,Mohammad Goodarzi

doi:10.3390/fluids1040031

Abstract

In the present study, the heat transfer and flow of water/FMWCNT (functionalized multi-walled carbon nanotube) nanofluids over a flat plate was investigated using a finite volume method. Simulations were performed for velocity ranging from 0.17 mm/s to 1.7 mm/s under laminar regime and nanotube concentrations up to 0.2%. The 2-D governing equations were solved using an in-house FORTRAN code. For a specific free stream velocity, the presented results showed that increasing the weight percentage of nanotubes increased the Nusselt number. However, an increase in the solid weight percentage had a negligible effect on the wall shear stress. The results also indicated that increasing the free stream velocity for all cases leads to thinner boundary layer thickness, while increasing the FMWCNT concentration causes an increase in the boundary layer thickness.

Highlights

Heat transfer fluids (HTFs) with enhanced thermal performance have attracted considerable attention in a wide range of industries including vehicle manufacturing, transportation, electronics and air conditioning
Different solid weight percentages and three free stream velocities for flow over the flat plate were used in the present simulations
The fluid flow and thermal field characteristics as well as Nusselt number for water/functionalized multi-walled carbon nanotube (FMWCNT) nanofluid were studied in details

Summary

Introduction

Heat transfer fluids (HTFs) with enhanced thermal performance have attracted considerable attention in a wide range of industries including vehicle manufacturing, transportation, electronics and air conditioning. Before the advancement of manufacture techniques for synthesis of nano-sized particles, some studies were performed on the effects of adding millimeter- or micrometer-sized particles to a base fluid [3]. Though inclusion of these types of particles generated fluids with enhanced thermal conductivity, they caused other issues like sedimentation, producing large pressure drops, clogging flow passages, and creating premature wear on duct walls and components [4]. Nanofluids are inherently superior HTFs compared to the microfluids [6]

Methods

Results

Conclusion