Experimental and Theoretical Studies of Different Parameters on the Thermal Conductivity of Nanofluids

Abstract

This work experimentally investigated the effects of different factors, including nanoparticle size and type, volume fraction, and base fluid, on the thermal conductivity enhancement of nanofluids. The experimental results indicate that the thermal conductivity enhancement of nanofluids is proportional to the thermal conductivity of the nanoparticles, with the enhancement being more pronounced for fluids with lower thermal conductivity. Meanwhile, the thermal conductivity of nanofluids decreases with increasing particle size and increases with increasing volume fraction. In addition, elongated particles are superior to spherical ones for thermal conductivity enhancement. This paper also proposes a thermal conductivity model by introducing the effect of nanoparticle size based on the previous classical thermal conductivity model via the method of dimensional analysis. This model analyzes the magnitude of influencing factors on the thermal conductivity of nanofluid and proposes suggestions for an improvement in thermal conductivity enhancement.