An Experimental Investigation of Thermal Conductivity of Nano Fluids Containing Al2O3 for Heat Extraction

Dr. K. Vimalanathan, S. Karthick, G. K. Kannan

Thermal conductivity of materials plays an important role in the efficiency of heat transfer in heat exchangers. Generally it is the practice of utilizing pure water for heat extraction from the processed fluids. Therefore it is essential to remove the heat from the fluid and slurry at a particular heat transfer rate in this investigation. A nano fluid, containing Al₂O₃ in pure water is utilized to remove the heat from the hot fluid with various concentration of Al₂O₃. The result revealed that the nano fluid is more efficient in heat removal and as well as show higher thermal conductivity. The increase in the addition Al₂O₃ in water increases the ability of the fluid to extract heat with better efficiency. The results show that the thermal conductivity is increase by 2 to 5 times, depending on Al₂O₃ concentration in the fluid.