Nanofluid Flow Simulation as the Flow through the Porous Media

Abstract

Nanofluid is an innovation of working fluids to enhance heat transfer in thermal systems, which can be created by combining solid nanoparticles (diameters less than 100 nm) and traditional base fluids. The nanoparticles can be suspended in the base fluids as Brownian motion. In addition, the nanofluids with nanoparticles, which are commonly made from metallic, nonmetallic, or polymer materials, have shown their enhancements in their effective thermal conductivities and their convective heat transfer coefficients [1, 2]. Nanofluid is a name conceived by Choi [3] who found the thermal conductivity of nanofluid was higher than the base fluids, resulting in significant enhancements in the heat transfer coefficients. Nanofluid selection is based on heat exchanger materials and the nanofluid properties. Additionally, sizes, shapes, volume fractions, and thermophysical properties of nanofluids, such as thermal conductivity, thermal diffusivity, and viscosity, play important roles on the heat transfer performances. © 2016 by Taylor and Francis Group, LLC.