Investigation on Heat Transfer Performance of Nanofluids

Abstract

Nanofluid is prepared by dissolving nanoparticles less than 100 nm in a base fluid. Various studies have shown that nanofluid provides a higher heat transfer rate compared to its base for similar flow conditions. It promises better heat transfer properties and can be used as an alternative to traditional heat transfer fluids. Different numerical models like single-phase, Eulerian and mixture model investigated to understand heat transfer performance. Thermal properties used in this study are calculated using a machine learning model. Numerical result characterizing heat transfer rate and heat transfer performance factor is presented. Result shows that Eulerian model for single-phase flow and k-ω Baseline Turbulence Model (BSL) for two-phase flows predict result more accurately. Use of nanofluid instead of base fluid laminar flow did not result in a significant increment of heat transfer rate but in the case of turbulent flow it increases significantly along with thermal performance factor.