Heat Transfer across Nanoparticles

A special issue of Applied Sciences (ISSN 2076-3417). This special issue belongs to the section "Energy Science and Technology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 November 2018) | Viewed by 22156

Special Issue Editor

School of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, Washington State University, PO Box 642920, Pullman, WA 99164-2920, USA
Interests: MEMS; actuators; sensors; energy conversion; micropower; heat and mass transfer
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Special Issue Information

Dear colleagues,

Nanoparticles have been used as the basic building blocks of a number of new materials with unique thermal properties. Super-insulating materials such as aerogels have been created by building up chains of nanoparticles fused together. Nanoparticles packed together into beds have been explored for their extremely low thermal conductivities, among the lowest of any solid material measured. Nanofluids (dilute suspensions of nanoparticles in liquids) are of interest due to their potential to enable the creation of fluids with augmented thermal conductivities.

Up to now, analytical work has been used to define limits on heat transfer in nanoparticle-based materials. For example, constriction resistance theory has been shown to be effective in predicting the contact resistance between nanoparticles, while diffuse and acoustic mismatch theory has led to limiting solutions for the boundary resistance at the solid–liquid interface between nanoparticles and surrounding liquids.  More recently, numerical work has shed light on the details of nanoscale heat transfer mechanisms. Taking advantage of the power of molecular dynamics simulations has dramatically increased our insight into the physics of thermal transport in nanoparticles. This theoretical work along with experimental measurements promises to lay a foundation for the development of new materials with tailored thermal properties.

The present Special Issue is concerned with developing that foundation. In particular, the Special Issue will deal with nanoscale heat transfer across individual nanoparticles, between contacting nanoparticles, and across the interface between a nanoparticle and the surrounding fluid (gas or liquid). We solicit contributions dealing with the controlling mechanisms determining heat transfer rates at these nanoscale interfaces. Studies involving analytical, numerical, or experimental investigations of thermal transport across, through, and between nanoparticles, as well as novel heat transfer applications involving nanoparticles are welcome.

Prof. Dr. Robert Richards
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • Nanoparticles
  • Heat Transfer
  • Molecular Dynamics Simulations
  • Nanoscale Interface
  • Nanofluid
  • Aerogel

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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18 pages, 4961 KiB  
Article
Numerical Study of Heat Transfer Enhancement for Laminar Nanofluids Flow
by Ramon Ramirez-Tijerina, Carlos I. Rivera-Solorio, Jogender Singh and K. D. P. Nigam
Appl. Sci. 2018, 8(12), 2661; https://doi.org/10.3390/app8122661 - 18 Dec 2018
Cited by 21 | Viewed by 4031
Abstract
The laminar forced convection has been investigated for the flow of nanofluids in conventional straight tube (L = 5.34 m, dt = 10 mm) and straight microtube (L = 0.3 m, dt = 0.5 mm) under the constant temperature and constant [...] Read more.
The laminar forced convection has been investigated for the flow of nanofluids in conventional straight tube (L = 5.34 m, dt = 10 mm) and straight microtube (L = 0.3 m, dt = 0.5 mm) under the constant temperature and constant heat flux conditions, separately. A wide range of the process parameters has been studied by varying three different type of base fluids including water, ethylene glycol and turbine oil with five different type of nanoparticles viz. Al2O3, TiO2, CuO, SiO2 and ZnO. Six different combinations of the geometries, base fluids and nanoparticle concentrations are considered in the present study. In addition to the single-phase model (SPH), the single-phase dispersion model (SPD) has been also used for effectiveness of the computed results. The results showed that Nusselt number (Nu) increases with increase in Reynolds number (Re). Further, the Nu considerably enhanced (up to 16% at volume fraction ϕ b = 4%, Re = 950) with increase in nanoparticle concentrations. Heat transfer correlations are developed for the flow of nanofluids in conventional straight tube and straight microtube over a wide range of process conditions (25 < Re < 1500, 0 < ϕ b < 10, 6 < Pr < 500) to enable a large number of engineering applications. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Heat Transfer across Nanoparticles)
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22 pages, 1666 KiB  
Article
Effects of Nanoparticles Materials on Heat Transfer in Electro-Insulating Liquids
by Grzegorz Dombek, Zbigniew Nadolny and Agnieszka Marcinkowska
Appl. Sci. 2018, 8(12), 2538; https://doi.org/10.3390/app8122538 - 07 Dec 2018
Cited by 24 | Viewed by 2799
Abstract
This paper discusses the effect of doping of electro-insulating liquids with nanoparticle materials on the thermal properties of the obtained nanoliquids and heat transport in the transformer. Mineral oil, synthetic ester, and natural ester were used as base liquids. The effectiveness of doping [...] Read more.
This paper discusses the effect of doping of electro-insulating liquids with nanoparticle materials on the thermal properties of the obtained nanoliquids and heat transport in the transformer. Mineral oil, synthetic ester, and natural ester were used as base liquids. The effectiveness of doping base liquids with nanoparticles was supported by ultraviolet-visible (UV/VIS) measurements. In turn, Attenuated Total Reflection Fourier Transform Infrared (ATR-FTIR) confirmed the absence of intermolecular interactions (i.e., hydrogen bonding). The influence of modification of electro-insulating liquids with fullerene C60 and titanium dioxide TiO2 nanoparticles on such thermal properties as thermal conductivity, specific heat, kinematic viscosity, density, and thermal expansion was investigated. Based on these properties and the theory of similarity, the cooling efficiency of the transformer filled with the analyzed nanofluids was determined. Nanofluids’ cooling effectiveness was compared with the cooling effectiveness of the base liquids. This comparison was supported by an analysis of Grashof, Prandtl, and Nusselt numbers. It has been shown that the modification of electro-insulating liquids with nanoparticles widely used in order to improve their dielectric properties, such as C60 and TiO2, does not have a significant influence on their thermal properties. The addition of fullerene C60 caused an increase in kinematic viscosity, which was compensated by the increase in specific heat. In the case of TiO2, the addition of this nanoparticle resulted in an increase in kinematic viscosity and a decrease in specific heat, which were balanced out by the increase in thermal conductivity. In summary, the heat exchange-capacity of liquids did not change due to doping with nanoparticles. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Heat Transfer across Nanoparticles)
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10 pages, 2703 KiB  
Article
Effect of Hydrophobicity on the Self-Assembly Behavior of Urea Benzene Derivatives in Aqueous Solution
by Yuna Okamoto, Kosuke Morishita, Yasufumi Fuchi, Shigeki Kobayashi and Satoru Karasawa
Appl. Sci. 2018, 8(7), 1080; https://doi.org/10.3390/app8071080 - 03 Jul 2018
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2542
Abstract
Urea benzene derivatives (UBD) with amphiphilic side chains showed self-assembly behavior in aqueous solution to form nanoparticles ~100 nm in size. Subsequent thermal treatment led to additional self-assembly of the nanoparticles due to dehydration of the amphiphilic side chains, producing microparticles. [...] Read more.
Urea benzene derivatives (UBD) with amphiphilic side chains showed self-assembly behavior in aqueous solution to form nanoparticles ~100 nm in size. Subsequent thermal treatment led to additional self-assembly of the nanoparticles due to dehydration of the amphiphilic side chains, producing microparticles. This self-assembly process was accompanied by a lower critical solution temperature (LCST) behavior, as revealed by the abrupt decrease in solution transmittance. In this study, three UBD (UBD-13) with different lengths of the alkyl segment in the amphiphilic side chain (namely, hexyl, heptyl, and octyl, respectively) were prepared to investigate the self-assembly behavior in aqueous solution. UBD-13 formed identical nanoparticles, with sizes in the 10~80 nm range but with different LCST values in the order 3 < 2 < 1. These results suggest a relationship between the hydrophobicity and the self-assembly behavior of UBD. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Heat Transfer across Nanoparticles)
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Review

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55 pages, 6255 KiB  
Review
Nanofluid Thermal Conductivity and Effective Parameters
by Sarah Simpson, Austin Schelfhout, Chris Golden and Saeid Vafaei
Appl. Sci. 2019, 9(1), 87; https://doi.org/10.3390/app9010087 - 26 Dec 2018
Cited by 72 | Viewed by 12360
Abstract
Due to the more powerful and miniaturized nature of modern devices, conventional heat-transfer working fluids are not capable of meeting the cooling needs of these systems. Therefore, it is necessary to improve the heat-transfer abilities of commonly used cooling fluids. Recently, nanoparticles with [...] Read more.
Due to the more powerful and miniaturized nature of modern devices, conventional heat-transfer working fluids are not capable of meeting the cooling needs of these systems. Therefore, it is necessary to improve the heat-transfer abilities of commonly used cooling fluids. Recently, nanoparticles with different characteristics have been introduced to base liquids to enhance the overall thermal conductivity. This paper studies the influence of various parameters, including base liquid, temperature, nanoparticle concentration, nanoparticle size, nanoparticle shape, nanoparticle material, and the addition of surfactant, on nanofluid thermal conductivity. The mechanisms of thermal conductivity enhancement by different parameters are discussed. The impact of nanoparticles on the enhanced thermal conductivity of nanofluids is clearly shown through plotting the thermal conductivities of nanofluids as a function of temperature and/or nanoparticle concentration on the same graphs as their respective base liquids. Additionally, the thermal conductivity of hybrid nanofluids, and the effects of the addition of carbon nanotubes on nanofluid thermal conductivity, are studied. Finally, modeling of nanofluid thermal conductivity is briefly reviewed. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Heat Transfer across Nanoparticles)
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