Heat transfer and friction factor of composite TiO2–SiO2 nanofluids in water-ethylene glycol (60:40) mixture

Nanofluids for Advanced Applications: A Comprehensive Review on Preparation Methods, Properties, and Environmental Impact

Nanofluids, an advanced class of heat transfer fluids, have gained significant attention due to their superior thermophysical properties, making them highly effective for various engineering applications. This review explores the impact of nanoparticle integration on the thermal conductivity, viscosity, and overall heat transfer performance of base fluids, highlighting improvements in systems, such as heat exchangers, electronics cooling, PV/T systems, CSP technologies, and geothermal heat recovery. Key mechanisms such as nanolayer formation, Brownian motion, and nanoparticle aggregation are discussed, with a focus on hybrid nanofluids that show enhanced thermal conductivity. The increase in viscosity poses a trade-off, necessitating careful control of the nanoparticle properties to optimize heat transfer while reducing energy consumption. Empirical data show up to a 123% increase in the convective heat transfer coefficients, demonstrating the tangible benefits of nanofluids in energy efficiency and system miniaturization. The review also considers the environmental impacts of nanofluid use, such as potential toxicity and the challenges of sustainable production and disposal. Future research directions include developing hybrid nanofluids with specific properties, integrating nanofluids with phase change materials, and exploring new nanomaterials such as metal chalcogenides to enhance the efficiency and sustainability of thermal management systems.

Thermophysical Properties of Vegetable Oil-Based Hybrid Nanofluids Containing Al2O3-TiO2 Nanoparticles as Insulation Oil for Power Transformers

The massive demand in the electrical power sector has resulted in a large demand for reliable, cost efficient, and environmentally friendly insulation oil to reduce the dependency on mineral oil. The hybridization of nanoparticles in vegetable oil is a novel method to enhance the thermal properties of vegetable oil. This study focuses on the experimental investigation of the thermophysical properties of coconut oil, soybean oil, and palm oil-based hybrid nanofluids suspended with Al₂O₃-TiO₂ nanoparticles at a mass concentration of 0.2, 0.4, and 0.6%. The ratio between Al₂O₃ and TiO₂ nanoparticles was maintained constant at 50:50. The main purpose of the study is to evaluate the thermal conductivity, dynamic viscosity, and density of different vegetable base oils suspended with Al₂O₃-TiO₂ in the temperature range of 30 to 60 °C. The influence of temperature on the augmentation of thermophysical properties for different vegetable oil-based hybrid nanofluids is investigated experimentally. The experimental results for thermal conductivity for the three types of base fluids show that the effect of nanoparticle mass concentration in thermal conductivity enhancement is less significant for temperatures more than 50 °C. The palm oil with a 0.6% Al₂O₃-TiO₂ nanoparticle concentration exhibited the highest thermal conductivity with a 27.5% thermal conductivity enhancement relative to the base oil. The effect of nanofluid temperature on density and viscosity augmentation is more distinct compared with the impact of Al₂O₃-TiO₂ nanoparticles concentrations. Among all three types of hybrid nanofluids, palm oil based nanofluids were found to have superior thermophysical properties compared with coconut oil and soybean oil, with the highest thermal conductivity of 0.628 W/m·k and lowest viscosity of 17.772 mPa·s.

Experimental Investigation of Rheological Properties and Thermal Conductivity of SiO2-TiO2 Composite Nanofluids Prepared by Atomic Layer Deposition

In the current research, surface-modified SiO₂ nanoparticles were used upon immersion in an applied base fluid (ethylene glycol:water = 1:1). The atomic layer deposition method (ALD) was introduced to obtain a thin layer of TiO₂ to cover the surface of SiO₂ particles. After the ALD modification, the TiO₂ content was monitored by energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS). Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and FT-IR spectroscopy were applied for the particle characterization. The nanofluids contained 0.5, 1.0, and 1.5 volume% solid particles and zeta potential measurements were examined in terms of colloid stability. A rotation viscosimeter and thermal conductivity analyzer were used to study the nanofluids' rheological properties and thermal conductivity. These two parameters were investigated in the temperature range of 20 °C and 60 °C. Based on the results, the thin TiO₂ coating significant impacted these parameters.

A Perspective Review on Thermal Conductivity of Hybrid Nanofluids and Their Application in Automobile Radiator Cooling

Hybrid nanofluids developed with the fusion or suspension of two or more different nanoparticles in a mixture as a novel heat transfer fluid are currently of interest to researchers due to their proven better measured thermal conductivities. Several reviewed articles exist on the thermal conductivity of hybrid nanofluids, a vital property for which the heat transfer rate is directly dependent. This review aims to understand the current developments in hybrid nanofluids and their applications. An extensive literature survey was carried out of heuristic-based articles published in the last 15 years. The review reiterates topical research on the preparation methods and ways to improve the stability of readied fluid, thermophysical properties of mixture nanofluids, and some empirical correlations developed for estimating thermal conductivity. Hybrid nanofluid studies on heat transfer performance in automobile radiator cooling systems were also obtained and discussed. The review’s significant findings include the following: (1) hybrid nanofluids produce a noticeable thermal conductivity enhancement and a relatively higher heat transfer coefficient than mono nanofluids and regular liquids. Furthermore, through the uniform dispersion and stable suspension of nanoparticles in the host liquids, the maximum possible thermal augmentation can be obtained at the lowest possible concentrations (by <0.1% by volume). (2) An automobile radiator’s overall heat transfer accomplishment can thus be boosted by using a mixture of nanofluids as conventional coolants. Up-to-date literature results on the thermal conductivity enhancement of mixture fluids are also presented in this study. Nonetheless, some of the barriers and challenges acknowledged in this work must be addressed for its complete deployment in modern applications.

A Review of Recent Passive Heat Transfer Enhancement Methods

Improvements in miniaturization and boosting the thermal performance of energy conservation systems call for innovative techniques to enhance heat transfer. Heat transfer enhancement methods have attracted a great deal of attention in the industrial sector due to their ability to provide energy savings, encourage the proper use of energy sources, and increase the economic efficiency of thermal systems. These methods are categorized into active, passive, and compound techniques. This article reviews recent passive heat transfer enhancement techniques, since they are reliable, cost-effective, and they do not require any extra power to promote the energy conversion systems’ thermal efficiency when compared to the active methods. In the passive approaches, various components are applied to the heat transfer/working fluid flow path to improve the heat transfer rate. The passive heat transfer enhancement methods studied in this article include inserts (twisted tapes, conical strips, baffles, winglets), extended surfaces (fins), porous materials, coil/helical/spiral tubes, rough surfaces (corrugated/ribbed surfaces), and nanofluids (mono and hybrid nanofluids).

Enabling Taguchi method with grey relational analysis to optimize the parameters of TiO2/ZnO heat transfer nanofluid for heat pipe application

Our previous work demonstrated that the TiO2/ZnO (1:1) nanocomposite suspended in ethylene glycol with CTAB (0.5 ml) as surfactant exhibits better heat transfer property than TiO2 and ZnO nanofluid. As an extension, the influence of parameters such as wt.% of ZnO Nps in TiO2/ZnO nanocomposite (0 wt.%, 25 wt.%, 50 wt.%, and 100 wt.%), the quantity of CTAB (250 μl, 500 μl, 750 μl, and 1000 μl) and vol.% of TiO2/ZnO nanocomposite (1 vol.%, 2 vol.%, 4 vol.%, and 8 vol.%) are analyzed through Taguchi design constructed with L16 orthogonal array is emphasized in the present work. As per the Taguchi design, the responses such as viscosity, thermal conductivity, and normalized height % for the set of input parameters are evaluated. Besides, the multiple responses are graded employing Grey relational analysis and the optimum set of parameters to achieve the preparation of the best nanofluid is identified as 25 wt.% ZnO, 1 vol.% nanocomposite and 500 μl CTAB which display viscosity of 0.043 Pa.s, thermal conductivity of 0.35 Wm−1 K−1, and normalized height % as 1%. Further, the optimal TiO2/ZnO nanofluid is used as working fluid in heat pipe and compared its results with ethylene glycol. From the calculated thermal resistance and heat transfer coefficient values, the TiO2/ZnO nanofluid outperforms the base fluid in a significant manner.