(455h) An Eyring-Based Model to Estimate the Dynamic Viscosity of Nanofluids
AIChE Annual Meeting
2012
2012 AIChE Annual Meeting
Engineering Sciences and Fundamentals
Thermodynamics at the Nanoscale
Wednesday, October 31, 2012 - 10:36am to 10:54am
Nanofluids are a new class of heat transfer fluids obtained by suspending nano-sized particles into a base liquid. It has been shown1 that an uniform dispersion of low concentrations of nanoparticles (e.g. TiO2, CuO, Al2O3) into a conventional liquid such as water may yield a significant enhancement in the thermal performance of the resulting suspension. Another important transport property that also undergoes a substantial change is the dynamic viscosity of the nanofluid. In fact, the increase in viscosity of nanofluids may occur thus leading to serious operating limitations in terms of increased pressure drops and therefore costly pumping requirements. Consequently, the importance of accurately calculating the effective dynamic viscosity of a nanofluid seems paramount in establishing if its use is indeed advantageous with respect to its pure base liquid. Well-known colloid dispersion theories by Einstein2,3, Brinkman4 and Lundgren5 have been recently used to predict the dynamic viscosity of nanofluids; however, all these theories significantly under-estimate this property. The aim of this work is to present the development of a viscosity model under the basis of the Eyring theory to properly estimate the effective dynamic viscosity of nanoparticle suspensions (aqueous and non-aqueous) within sufficiently wide ranges of temperature, particle volume fraction and particle diameter.
[1] Choi SUS. Developments and applications of non-Newtonian flows, vols. 31/MD–66. New York, NY, FED: ASME Publ.; 99–105, 1995.
[2] Einstein A. Ann Phys; 19:289–306, 1906.
[3] Einstein A. Ann Phys; 34:591–92, 1911.
[4] Brinkman HC. J Chem Phys; 20:571, 1952.
[5] Lundgren T. J Fluid Mech; 51:273–99, 1972.
See more of this Session: Thermodynamics at the Nanoscale
See more of this Group/Topical: Engineering Sciences and Fundamentals
See more of this Group/Topical: Engineering Sciences and Fundamentals