Numerical Study of Laminar Mixed Convection of a Nanofluid in a Horizontal Curved Tube with Constant Heat Flux and Mass Flow Rate

Abstract

Fully developed laminar mixed convection of a nanofluid (water/Al2O3) in a horizontal curved tube is numerically investigated. Three-dimensional elliptic governing equations have been solved to show how nanoparticle concentration affects on thermal and hydrodynamic parameters while these parameters are impressed by centrifugal and buoyancy forces under constant mass flow rate and heat flux. Comparisons with previously published experimental works on horizontal curved tubes show good agreements between the results. Results which are obtained using the two – phase mixture model indicate that adding the nanoparticles causes changes in the properties of nanofluid and finally increases the temperature of the flow. Furthermore, increasing nanoparticles volume fraction at first augments the heat transfer coefficient of nanofluid and then, for higher concentration of particles, decreases this thermal parameter of nanofluid.