Role of nanofluid fouling on thermal performance of a thermosyphon: Are nanofluids reliable working fluid?

Abstract This paper focuses on fouling formation of nanofluid in a gravity-assisted thermosyphon equipped with a mesh screen wick. A transient study has been established on the fouling resistance of water-based TiO 2 nanofluids at different operating conditions comprising the applied heat flux, mass concentration and inclination of thermosyphon. Nanofluids were prepared using prolonged sonication, stirring, and pH control. Triton X-100 was utilized as a dispersant. The thermosyphon is a copper made tube, which is dimensionally 10.7 mm and 12 mm for inner and outer pipe diameters respectively and total length of 280 mm. Transient results over the extended time reveal a considerable deterioration of heat transfer coefficient and thermal performance as a result of fouling formation inside the wick at evaporator section. According to the results, rate of fouling can be enhanced by increasing the nanofluid mass concentration. Intensification of fouling on wick structure and internal wall of evaporator causes instabilities in thermal performance of thermosyphon over the time, which eventually causes the thermosyphon failure. This point has been ignored by most of previous researchers, which has a considerably negative impact on thermal performance of thermosyphon at longer operating time and higher heat loads. Therefore, a new fouling resistance model has been re-developed combining the microfluidic typical models. This model can predict the fouling resistance of nanofluid inside the thermosyphon with approximate deviation of 30%.

[1]  Y. Chung,et al.  Boiling heat transfer and dryout in helically coiled tubes under different pressure conditions , 2014 .

[2]  S. Rittidech,et al.  A correlation to predict heat-transfer rates of a two-phase closed thermosyphon (TPCT) using silver nanofluid at normal operating conditions , 2010 .

[3]  H. Tseng,et al.  Visualization experiments on the condensation process in heat pipe wicks , 2014 .

[4]  David Reay,et al.  Heat pipes : theory, design and applications , 2014 .

[5]  R. Chein,et al.  Thermoelectric cooler application in electronic cooling , 2004 .

[6]  Stephen U. S. Choi,et al.  Cooling performance of a microchannel heat sink with nanofluids , 2006 .

[7]  Jong-Wook Kim,et al.  Heat pipe cooling technology for desktop PC CPU , 2003 .

[8]  Zhen-hua Liu,et al.  Application of water-based SiO2 functionalized nanofluid in a loop thermosyphon , 2013 .

[9]  Abolfazl Shakouri,et al.  Effect of electric field on thermal performance of thermosyphon heat pipes using nanofluids , 2014 .

[10]  K. S. Ong,et al.  Effects of nanofluids on heat transfer characteristics of a two-phase closed thermosyphon , 2013 .

[11]  C. T. Nguyen,et al.  Heat transfer enhancement using Al2O3–water nanofluid for an electronic liquid cooling system , 2007 .

[12]  Saeed Zeinali Heris,et al.  HEAT TRANSFER ENHANCEMENT USING AL2O3/WATER NANOFLUID IN A TWO-PHASE CLOSED THERMOSYPHON , 2009 .

[13]  Angel Huminic,et al.  Experimental study of the thermal performance of thermosyphon heat pipe using iron oxide nanoparticles , 2011 .

[14]  Yu-Wei Chang,et al.  Heat pipe for cooling of electronic equipment , 2008 .

[15]  Stephen U. S. Choi.  Enhancing thermal conductivity of fluids with nano-particles , 1995 .

[16]  Nandy Putra,et al.  Thermal performance of screen mesh wick heat pipes with nanofluids , 2012 .

[17]  Y. Xuan,et al.  Investigation on Convective Heat Transfer and Flow Features of Nanofluids , 2003 .

[18]  Anthony J. Robinson,et al.  Characterization of evaporator and condenser thermal resistances of a screen mesh wicked heat pipe , 2008 .

[19]  F. Hormozi,et al.  Experimental study on the thermal performance and efficiency of a copper made thermosyphon heat pipe charged with alumina–glycol based nanofluids , 2014 .

[20]  Madhusree Kole,et al.  Thermal performance of screen mesh wick heat pipes using water-based copper nanofluids , 2013 .

[21]  P. Adomeit,et al.  Deposition of fine particles from a turbulent liquid flow: Experiments and numerical predictions , 1996 .

[22]  S. M. Peyghambarzadeh,et al.  Particulate fouling of CuO–water nanofluid at isothermal diffusive condition inside the conventional heat exchanger-experimental and modeling , 2015 .

[23]  Paisarn Naphon,et al.  Liquid cooling in the mini-rectangular fin heat sink with and without thermoelectric for CPU☆ , 2009 .

[24]  P. Griffith,et al.  The mechanism of heat transfer in nucleate pool boiling—Part I: Bubble initiaton, growth and departure , 1965 .

[25]  V. Romanenkov,et al.  Loop heat pipe for cooling of high-power electronic components , 2009 .

[26]  Kyu Hyung Do,et al.  Thermal resistance of screen mesh wick heat pipes using the water-based Al2O3 nanofluids , 2010 .

[27]  Yu-Wei Chang,et al.  Thermoelectric water-cooling device applied to electronic equipment , 2010 .

[28]  S. J. Kline,et al.  Describing Uncertainties in Single-Sample Experiments , 1953 .

[29]  M. Buschmann,et al.  Improvement of thermosyphon performance by employing nanofluid , 2014 .

[30]  Nandy Putra,et al.  Application of nanofluids to a heat pipe liquid-block and the thermoelectric cooling of electronic equipment , 2011 .

[31]  F. Hormozi,et al.  Pool boiling heat transfer to dilute copper oxide aqueous nanofluids , 2015 .

[32]  Feng Zhao,et al.  Thermal performance of an open thermosyphon using nanofluid for evacuated tubular high temperature air solar collector , 2013 .

[33]  M. Hamed,et al.  Experimental investigation of the effect of particle deposition on pool boiling of nanofluids , 2012 .

[34]  B. T. Chew,et al.  Performance dependence of thermosyphon on the functionalization approaches: An experimental study on thermo-physical properties of graphene nanoplatelet-based water nanofluids , 2015 .

[35]  S. M. Peyghambarzadeh,et al.  Thermal performance and efficiency of a thermosyphon heat pipe working with a biologically ecofriendly nanofluid , 2014 .

[36]  Paisarn Naphon,et al.  Experimental investigation of titanium nanofluids on the heat pipe thermal efficiency , 2008 .

[37]  Zhen-Hua Liu,et al.  Flow boiling heat transfer in the evaporator of a loop thermosyphon operating with CuO based aqueous nanofluid , 2012 .

[38]  Petro O. Kapustenko,et al.  Accounting for Thermal Resistance of Cooling Water Fouling in Plate Heat Exchangers , 2012 .