Accepted Manuscript

Convective Heat Transfer Coefficient and Pressure Drop of Water-Ethylene

Glycol Mixture with Graphene Nanoplatelets

C. Selvam, T. Balaji, D. Mohan Lal, Sivasankaran Harish

PII: S0894-1777(16)30218-7
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.expthermflusci.2016.08.013
Reference: ETF 8851

To appear in: Experimental Thermal and Fluid Science

Received Date: 24 May 2016

Revised Date: 8 August 2016
Accepted Date: 8 August 2016

Please cite this article as: C. Selvam, T. Balaji, D. Mohan Lal, S. Harish, Convective Heat Transfer Coefficient and
Pressure Drop of Water-Ethylene Glycol Mixture with Graphene Nanoplatelets, Experimental Thermal and Fluid
Science (2016), doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.expthermflusci.2016.08.013

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 Convective Heat Transfer Coefficient and Pressure Drop of Water-Ethylene Glycol

Mixture with Graphene Nanoplatelets

C. Selvama, T. Balajia, D. Mohan Lal*a, Sivasankaran Harishb

a
Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning Division, Department of Mechanical Engineering,

Anna University, Chennai -600 025, Tamil Nadu, India.

b
International Institute for Carbon-Neutral Energy Research Kyushu University (WPI-I2CNER),

744 Motooka, Nishi-ku, Fukuoka, Japan,819-0395.

Abstract

In the present work, we report the convective heat transfer coefficient and pressure drop

of water-ethylene glycol mixture seeded with graphene nanoplatelets under laminar, transition

and turbulent flow regions. Sodium deoxycholate was used as the surfactant to prepare stable

nanofluid dispersions. Thermophysical properties of nanofluids were measured experimentally.

Experimental investigations on the convective heat transfer coefficient and pressure drop were

performed in a tube-in-tube counter flow heat exchanger using nanofluid as the hot fluid and

chilled water as the cold fluid. The effects of nanofluid inlet temperature on the convective heat

transfer coefficient and pressure drop were investigated for different mass flow rates. The

enhancement of convective heat transfer coefficient was found to increase with respect to

Reynolds number, graphene loading and inlet temperature. The maximum enhancement of

convective heat transfer coefficient is observed to be ~170% at 0.5 vol% in the turbulent region.

The pressure drop increment of the nanofluid is predominant in the laminar region as compared

to turbulent region. The enhancement of pressure drop is moderate in the turbulent region which

favours these nanofluids to be used in the thermal systems for different engineering applications.

1 (D. Mohan lal), Tel: +91 44 22357609

Corresponding author: mohanlal@annauniv.edu
Keywords: convective heat transfer, graphene, nanofluid, laminar, turbulent, pressure drop

1. Introduction

Energy transport plays a vital role globally and occupies a very predominant position in

various fields such as mechanical, electrical, chemical, transportation, nuclear and oil industries.

Heat transfer can be achieved by means of conduction and convection posing both advantages

and disadvantages. Conduction is not always possible in variety of applications which leads to

the pathway of emerging trends in convective heat transfer using fluids. Varieties of

conventional fluids such as water, ethylene glycol, oil, air etc. are being used to transfer the heat

based on the areas of applications. However, the performance of heat transfer fluids becomes

challenging and highly critical where large amount of heat is to be transferred. Several

explorations were performed over the years to enhance the thermal conductivity of conventional

heat transfer fluids by seeding the high thermal conductivity nanosized particles. These

explorations lead to the emergence of new class of heat transfer fluid termed as nanofluids

coined by Choi and Eastman [1]. This fluid contains the dispersion of nano sized highly thermal

conductive particle to the basefluids providing enhanced thermal conductivity, excellent stability

and enhanced heat transfer coefficient which is the major deciding factor for convection studies.

Numerous convection experiments were done on metals (Al, Cu, Ag, Au and Ti) and

metal oxides (Al2O3, CuO, TiO2 and ZnO) based nanofluids and researchers reported that the heat

transfer coefficient enhances due to the high thermal conductivity of nano particles [2-5].

However these studies face serious challenges due to simultaneous increase in viscosity of

nanofluids for higher volume fractions due to higher density of nanoparticles. These challenges

are overcome by the carbon based nanostructures having higher thermal conductivity than metal

2
and metal oxides which leads to the enhancement of heat transfer coefficient at lower volume

fractions itself. Similarly, the bulk density of carbon nano structures are low compared to metal

and metal oxides that only a limited increase in viscosity is experienced as the volume fraction

increases.

Investigations on convective heat transfer characteristics of carbon nanostructure based

nanofluids are limited as compared with other nanofluids. Experiments on thermal conductivity

and heat transfer coefficient of nanofluids with carbon nanostructures such as carbon nanotubes

(CNTs) [6-14] and graphene nanoplatelets (GnP) [15-25] reveal the high heat transfer

characteristics of nanomaterial based nanofluids as compared with other nanofluids. Lack of

agreement existing between the reported experimental results lead to the lack of understanding

about the mechanism responsible for the enhancement. From the above literature, it is observed

that thermophysical properties are mainly obtained using existing models and a few were

measured using conventional techniques. Hence further experimental investigations are needed

to exactly predict the thermophysical properties and heat transfer behaviour of GnP with

different flow regions, basefluids, concentration and temperature.

To improve the convective heat transfer coefficient GnP (2D allotrope of carbon) with

low density, high thermal conductivity and high aspect ratio were used in this work. Ethylene

glycol and aqueous ethylene glycol are generally used as a secondary coolant in industrial

refrigeration systems [26] and coolant in the automobile radiator [27]. However the general

recommendation of not less than 30% concentration of ethylene glycol in water is to be taken

into account for fast motorway driving in winter [27]. Hence in the current study, water-ethylene

glycol mixture (H2O-EG) containing 30% volume concentration of ethylene glycol was used as

the basefluid. This nanofluid dispersion was selected due to the following reasons;

3
(1) No research has been reported with similar dispersion in a tube-in-tube counter current heat

exchanger, (2) Higher thermal conductivity and high aspect ratio of GnP of the order of 3000-

5000 W/mK can significantly improve the thermal conductivity and convective heat transfer

characteristics of nanofluids.

In our previous work [28], we have investigated the heat transfer characteristics of

silver/H2O-EG nanofluid experimentally in which enhancement of heat transfer coefficient was

observed to be ~42% only. It is also observed that the viscosity of nanofluids increases

significantly with respect to volume concentration due to higher density of silver nanoparticles.

Moreover, the pressure drop of silver nanofluids was higher at loadings beyond 0.15 vol% which

limits the potential of such systems for practical applications. In the present work, we report the

thermo-physical properties, heat transfer coefficient and pressure drop of GnP/H2O-EG

nanofluid in which the concentration was varied from 0% to 0.5%. Correspondingly the observed

enhancement is significant.

2. Materials and methods

2.1 Preparation of nanofluids

In the present study, GnP were purchased from XG Sciences with an average thickness of 5-

10 nm and mean particle diameter of 15 µm (Grade M). The SEM visualization of GnP is shown

in fig. 1. The hydrophobic nature of GnP makes it very difficult to disperse them in a basefluid

directly. In the present work, we used sodium deoxycholate as the surfactant to prepare stable

nanofluid dispersions. H2O-EG (30:70) along with 0.75 vol% of surfactant was used as a

basefluid in this study. The GnPs were mixed with the H2O-EG under intensive sonication for 2

h using the ultrasonic processor (QSonica, USA) along with 0.75 vol% Sodium deoxycholate

4
(DOC) as the surfactant. The volume concentrations of the GnP loading considered were viz.

0.1%, 0.2%, 0.3%, 0.4% and 0.5% with the surfactant. There was no visible sedimentation in the

sample kept undisturbed for three months.

Fig. 1. SEM visualization of GnP

2.2 Measurement of thermo-physical properties

The thermo-physical properties are the main factors that affect the heat transfer

performance of coolants in thermal systems. Thermal conductivity (knf), viscosity (µnf), density

(ρnf), and specific heat capacity (Cpnf) of nanofluids were measured using hot wire transient

method (KD2 Pro thermal properties analyser, Decagon Devices Inc, USA), Capillary

viscometer (Shambhavi Impex, India), electronic weighing balance (Shimadzu Analytical &

measuring instruments, Japan) and differential scanning calorimeter (TA instruments, USA)

respectively for different temperatures ranging from 30°C to 50°C. These conventional

techniques were successfully used for the measurement of thermophysical properties of

5
Ag/H2O-EG nanofluid in our previous investigations [28, 29]. The thermal diffusivity that

indicates the ease with which heat diffuses through the nanofluid was determined using Eq. (1).

 k 
 nf    (1)
 Cp  nf

2.3 Experimental test facility

The schematic layout of the experimental test facility with tube in tube counter flow heat

exchanger is shown in fig. 2. The test facility comprises of two flow loops that carries the hot

fluid (GnP/H2O-EG nanofluid) and cold fluid (de-ionized water). There is a pump and flow

meter in each loop. The test section was made up of bright annealed hardened copper tubes. The

test section is 2.97m long and the spatial temperature variation of both fluids can be measured at

regular intervals. The inside diameter of the inner and outer tube are 4.3 mm and 10.5 mm

respectively with an average thickness of 2 mm. The test section was insulated to avoid any heat

gain or loss from or to the surrounding. Each loop had heating/cooling provision to maintain the

desire inlet temperature to the test section. Six temperature sensors (PT100-RTD, ±0.15°C

accuracy) are fixed on the inner and outer tube walls at regular intervals along the axial length to

measure the temperatures. Two temperature sensors are fixed at both ends of the each tube and

all sensors are connected to a data-logger (Agilent data logger, model No: 34970A). The mass

flow rate of nanofluid and de-ionized water were measured using a coriolis mass flow meter

(±0.1% accuracy) and rota meter (±2% accuracy) respectively. In order to measure the pressure

drop in the GnP/H2O-EG nanofluid a pressure transmitter (0.1% accuracy) is fixed at the inlet

and outlet of the inner tube. Detailed information of the experimental test facility was reported in

our previous work [28].

6
 Fig. 2. Test facility for studying convective heat transfer coefficient [28]

2.4 Experimental procedure

Experimental investigations on convective heat transfer coefficient (CHTC) of nanofluid

were performed for the volume concentrations viz. 0%, 0.1%, 0.2%, 0.3%, 0.4% and 0.5%. For

each concentration the mass flow rate was varied from 5 to 45 g/s in steps of 5 g/s with 35°C and

45°C as the inlet temperature of nanofluid. Thus there were 6 concentrations (including pure

basefluid) and 9 flow rates and 2 inlet temperatures for the nanofluid while the chilled water was

maintained at 16g/s flow rate and 25°C inlet temperature. For each case the flow rate and

temperature setting were adjusted and the system was run to attain steady state. The pressure

drop in the nanofluid was also noted. The convective heat transfer coefficient of the nanofluid

was determined using the measured values of temperature.

7
3. Data reduction

The CHTC of GnP/H2O-EG nanofluid flowing through the inner tube of the test section

was determined as follows.

The heat transfer rate of GnP/H2O-EG nanofluid (hot fluid) was determined using the

following Eq. (2).

Qnf  mnf Cpnf Thi  Tho nf (2)

Overall heat transfer coefficient based on inner tube area was determined using the

following Eq. (3).

Qnf
Ui  (3)
Ai T LMTD

Logarithmic mean temperature difference for counter flow heat exchanger was

determined using the following Eq. (4).

Thi  Tco   (Tho  Tci )

TLMTD  (4)
 Thi  Tco  

ln  
 (Tho  Tci ) 

CHTC of cold fluid (chilled water) was determined using Dittus Boelter correlation for

fully developed turbulent flow condition using Eq. (5).

0.3  k 
hw  0.023Re w Pr w  w 
0.8
(5)
 Dh 

8
 Reynolds number and Prandtl number of annulus fluid (chilled water) was determined

using the following Eq. (6)

 VDh   C P 
Re w    , Prw    (6)
  w  k w

Where, Dh=hydraulic diameter=Di-do

Finally CHTC and Nusselt number of GnP/H2O-EG nanofluid (hot fluid) was determined

by following Eqs. (7) & (8).

1
hnf  (7)
1  Ai  ln d o / d i  1  Ai 
   
Ui 2k wall L hw  Ao 

hnf d i
Nu nf  (8)
k nf

Reynolds number and Prandtl number of nanofluid was determined using the following Eq. (9)

 Vd i   C P 
Re nf    , Prnf    (9)
   nf  k  nf

Where, di=inner diameter of inner tube

Friction factor of nanofluid was determined using the following Eq. (10)

2d i Pnf
f nf  (10)
L nf V 2

9
4. Uncertainty analysis

The uncertainty analysis was performed quantitatively as per the procedure proposed by

Moffat [30] in order to validate the results obtained from the experiments. Considering the

accuracies of mass flow meter, pressure transmitter and temperature sensors described in section

2.3, an uncertainty analysis was carried out. The uncertainty in pressure drop of nanofluid is

found to be 2%. The uncertainty of heat transfer rate typically ranges from 1% - 7%. The

maximum uncertainty of convective heat transfer coefficient is found to be 7.5%. The

uncertainty of CHTC was increased significantly in the higher mass flow rate conditions. The

uncertainty in the CHTC of nanofluid was determined using the following Eqs. (11-16).

The uncertainty of the heat transfer rate was determined as follows,

mnf Cp nf T nf

q (11)
Ai

2 2 2 2
 Uq 
2
Umnf q  UCpnf q  UTN 1 q  UTN 2 q 
           (12)
 q   q mnf   q Cp nf   q TN 1   q TN 2 

2 2
Umnf  UCpnf 
2 2 2
 Uq   UTN 1   UTN 2 
           (13)
 q   mnf   Cp nf   TN 1  TN 2   TN 1  TN 2 

Where, Uq, Umnf, UCpnf, UTN1 and UTN2 are uncertainties of heat transfer rate, mass

flow rate, specific heat capacity and nanofluid temperatures respectively.

Similarly, the uncertainty in CHTC of nanofluids was determined using predicted uncertainty

of heat transfer rate as given in Eqs. (14-16).

10
 q
hnf  (14)
TN  TW

2 2 2
 Uhnf 
2
 hnf  UT hnf  UT hnf 
    Uq   N   W  (15)
 h   hnf q   hnf TN   hnf TW 
 nf 

2
 Uhnf 
2 2 2
   
   Uq    UTN    UTW  (16)
 h 
 nf   q   TN  TW   TN  TW 

Where, Uhnf, UTN and UTW are uncertainties in CHTC, mean temperature of nanofluid and wall

temperature respectively.

5. Results and discussion

In the present work, the convective heat transfer coefficient of GnP/H2O-EG nanofluids

with volume concentrations of GnP viz. 0.1%, 0.2%, 0.3%, 0.4% and 0.5% for different inlet

temperatures and flow rates were carried out experimentally. The effects of thermophysical

properties, GnP loading, inlet temperature, and mass flow rate on the CHTC and pressure drop

are discussed.

5.1 Thermo-physical properties of GnP/H2O-EG nanofluids

To validate the measurement techniques, initially the thermo-physical properties of

H2O-EG mixture (70:30) were measured and compared with ASHRAE standard [31] values as

shown in fig. 3 (a-d). It is observed that the measured thermal conductivity, viscosity, density

and specific heat capacity values are in good agreement with the ASHRAE standard values

within ±1 %, ±2 %, ±1 % and ±2 % deviations respectively.

11
 Fig. 3. (a-d). Comparison of the measured thermo-physical properties with ASHRAE standard values.

The thermo-physical properties of GnP/H2O-EG nanofluids such as thermal conductivity,

viscosity, density and specific heat results with respect to GnP loading are shown in fig. 4 (a)-

(d). The thermal conductivity of nanofluids is found to increase with respect to GnP loading and

temperature. In this study, the maximum enhancement of thermal conductivity is found to be

~29% for 0.5 vol%. Many factors affecting the thermal conductivity enhancement such as high

thermal conductivity of the particle, Brownian motion, clustering of nanoparticles, micro

12
convection, thermophoretic effect and nanolayer formation have been reported [32, 33]. Recent

experiments show that particle clustering plays a significant role in thermal conductivity

enhancement as compared to the effect of Brownian motion and micro-convection of particles

[34, 35]. In the present study, the high thermal conductive two dimensional structure of GnP and

networking of GnP and particle clustering could be the possible reasons for the enhancement of

thermal conductivity.

The viscosity of nanofluids increases with increase in GnP loading and decreases with

increasing temperature. This can be attributed to the fact that the density of the nanofluid

decreases with increase in temperature and results in lowering the shearing force between the

fluid layers. The maximum enhancement of viscosity is found to be ~40% for 0.5 vol%

nanofluid. The nanoparticle aggregation in the basefluid is augmenting the viscosity and

resulting in enhancement. When the nanofluid temperature decreases, the viscosity increases due

to reduction in the intermolecular interactions between the particles. The higher kinetic energy of

the molecules makes it possible for enhanced fluid motion and lowers the viscosity when the

temperature increases.

The density of graphene nanofluids increases with respect to GnP loading and decreases

with respect to temperature. The maximum enhancement of density is observed to be ~4% for

0.5 vol% nanofluid. Density enhancement of nanofluid is not predominant compared to other

nanofluid dispersion. It is observed that low density of GnP limits the enhancement of density in

the nanofluid.

The specific heat capacity of nanofluid is found to increase with increase in temperature

and decreases with increase in GnP loading. The maximum decrement of specific heat capacity

13
is observed to be ~9% for 0.5 vol% nanofluid. The specific heat capacity of GnP is less than the

base fluid; hence the specific heat capacity of the dispersion reduces with addition of GnP. The

enhancement of thermal conductivity and decrement of specific heat capacity may lead to

increase in the convective heat transfer coefficient.

Fig. 4 (a - d). Thermo-physical properties of nanofluids as a function of GnP loading

14
5.2 Thermal diffusivity of GnP/H2O-EG nanofluids

Fig. 5 shows the variation of thermal diffusivity of nanofluids with respect to GnP

loading for different temperatures. It is observed that the thermal diffusivity increases with

increasing GnP loading. This is due to the product Cp decreases with increase in GnP loading.

Since the enhancement of thermal conductivity is significantly high with respect to GnP loading,

there is an increase in thermal diffusivity. The enhancement of thermal diffusivity leads to the

faster propagation of heat into and out of the medium. The maximum enhancement of thermal

diffusivity observed is ~37% for 0.5 vol% with respect to basefluid.

Fig. 5. Thermal diffusivity of nanofluids as a function of GnP loading

5.3 Calibration of experimental facility

The convective heat transfer coefficient experiments were performed for the test

conditions as per the parameters described in section 2.4. To validate the experimental facility,

15
initially the experimental Nusselt number values of pure basefluids such as H2O-EG (70:30)

mixture and pure water are compared with those estimated using the existing correlations [36,

37] as shown in fig. 6 (a) and (b). It is observed that the predicted Nusselt number values are in

good agreement with the experimental values, thus validating the test facility for its accuracy and

repeatability.

Fig. 6 (a) and (b). Comparison of measured Nusselt number with those estimated from existing
correlations [36, 37].

5.4 Convective heat transfer coefficient

Fig. 7 (a) and (b) show the variation of convective heat transfer coefficient as a function

of Reynolds number for different GnP loading. The convective heat transfer coefficient is found

to increase with respect to GnP loading and Reynolds number. It is observed that, Reynolds

number decreases with increasing GnP loading due to increment in viscosity. The mass flow rate

can be enhanced to restore the Reynolds number and the higher mass flow rate results in thinner

16
thermal boundary layer and increased CHTC. At lower GnP loading (upto 0.2 vol%) the

enhancement of viscosity is not a major impediment for the enhancement of convective heat

transfer coefficient. This is because as seen fig. 7. (a & b) the Reynolds number is not

significantly reduced as GnP loading increases from 0 vol% to 0.2 vol%. The increment in

CHTC is significant at a nanofluid inlet temperature of 45°C. This can be attributed to the fact

that the thermal conductivity of nanofluids increases and viscosity decreases when the nanofluid

temperature is increased from 35°C to 45°C. The maximum enhancement of convective heat

transfer coefficient is found to be ~170% for 0.5 vol% in the turbulent region with Re = 6790.

The particle aggregation can be a possible reason for the enhancement of heat transfer coefficient

at higher volume fraction in the basefluid. It is significant when the volume fraction of GnP is

increased from 0.3% to 0.4% in the region of Reynolds number around 2000 – 6000 at 35°C.

Further, the particle aggregation is broken down at higher flow rate conditions resulting in steep

increase the heat transfer coefficient above Re=6000 due to the collision of particles in the tube

wall. The enhancement of CHTC exceeds 100% when GnP loading increases from 0.2 vol% to

0.3 vol%. Beyond 0.3 vol% of GnP the enhancement in heat transfer coefficient is limited.

Hence it is reported that these nanofluids can be used up to 0.3 vol% for such applications in

thermal systems with limited enhancement of viscosity. The maximum enhancement of CHTC is

observed at 35°C in the laminar region while it is observed at 45°C in turbulent region.

17
 Fig. 7 (a) and (b) Variation of the CHTC as a function of Reynolds number

Few researches have been carried out on the heat transfer characteristics of graphene

based nanofluids with different basefluids. The present results were compared with literature

reports and mechanisms behind the enhancement of heat transfer characteristics were discussed.

Ghozatloo et al. [18] reported that the CHTC of GnP-H2O nanofluids enhanced by 35.6% at 0.1

wt% due to significant improvement in thermal conductivity. Ghozatloo et al. [19] studied the

heat transfer characteristics of GnP-EG nanofluid and reported that the CHTC and heat

conduction increases by 42.4% and 21.2% respectively for 0.15 wt%. Arzani et al. [21] reported

that the CHTC of GnP-H2O nanofluid increased by 22% for 0.1 wt%. In the present work the

maximum enhancement of CHTC observed is ~22%-55% at 35°C for 0.1 vol% which is

comparable to the above literature. Mehrali et al. [22] investigated the heat transfer

characteristics of GnP-H2O nanofluids and observed that the CHTC enhanced by 80-200% due

to increase in heat conduction of nanofluids and specific surface area of the graphene. In the

present study we observed an enhancement of heat transfer coefficient from ~6% to 170% when

18
graphene loading varied from 0.1% to 0.5% for different flow regions which is in line with the

above literature [22]. The higher enhancements were observed when the graphene loading

increases from 0.2% to 0.5% in the current study. While in the above literature the higher

enhancements were found with lower volume fractions (<0.2 vol%). This deviation can be

attributed to the size of the GnP, purity level, basefluid, flow region and geometry of the test

section. In the above literature it is reported that the increased thermal conductivity due to

increment in graphene loading could be the possible reason for the enhancement of convective

heat transfer coefficient. However, in the present study, the observed enhancement in CHTC

could be attributed to the higher thermal conductivity, thermal diffusivity of dispersion, particle

clustering and reduction of boundary layer thickness. Further the high aspect ratio coupled with

high thermal conductivity of particles that participate in the energy transfer process between the

fluid and tube wall could be another possible reason for the enhancement of convective heat

transfer coefficient.

Nusselt number

Fig. 8 (a) and (b) show the variation of the Nusselt number as a function of Reynolds

number for different GnP loading. It is clearly seen that the enhancement of Nusselt number is

found to increase with increase in GnP loading and Reynolds number. The enhancement of

Nusselt number can be attributed to the fact of the higher heat transfer coefficient of nanofluid

with respect to GnP loading and Reynolds number. The enhancement of Nusselt number is

limited when GnP loading increases from 0.3 vol% to 0.5 vol% due to the enhancement of

thermal conductivity. Enhancement of Nusselt number with respect to GnP loading is minimal in

the laminar region. A maximum enhancement of Nusselt number is found to be ~96% for 0.5

vol% with respect to basefluid. The enhancement of Nusselt number is exceeding 100% when

19
nanofluid inlet temperature is increased from 35°C to 45°C. The enhancement of convective heat

transfer coefficient and reduction of viscosity lead to the increase in Nusselt number.

Fig. 8 (a) and (b). Variation of Nusselt number as a function of Reynolds Number

5.5 Pressure drop and friction factor

The variation of pressure drop as a function of Reynolds number is shown in

fig. 9 (a) and (b). The pressure drop of nanofluid is found to increase with respect to GnP loading

and Reynolds number. In the range of the considered typical rise in Reynolds number and GnP

loading (vol%), it is observed that the pressure drop is significantly affected by the increase in

Reynolds number than that of GnP loading. It can be seen that the variation in pressure drop with

respect to GnP loading for the same mass flow rate of nanofluid is by and large within ~15% (2.5

kPa) only. But for the same GnP loading when the mass flow rate is increased from 5g/s to 45g/s

the pressure drop increases from 2.34 kPa to 59.13 kPa. In the laminar region, the increase in

pressure drop with respect to GnP loading is more pronounced than in the turbulent region where

it is almost flat. The average rise in pressure drop in the laminar region is ~70% as compared to

20
~13% in the turbulent region. This is observed at both inlet temperatures viz. 35°C and 45°C.

Hence it would be prudent to use these nanofluids in the turbulent region as the detrimental

effects due to increased pressure drop are less.

Comparing fig. 9 (a) and (b) it can be observed that the pressure drop decreases as the

temperature of the nanofluid is increased. This is possibly because of reduction in viscosity as

the temperature increases. As the inlet temperature increases from 35°C to 45°C, the viscosity of

the nanofluid (0.5 vol%) reduces by ~25% while the average pressure drop decreases by ~9% for

the considered range of mass flow rates.

Fig. 9 (a) and (b). Variation of pressure drop as a function of Reynolds Number

Figure 10 (a) and (b) shows the variation of friction factor as a function of Reynolds

number for different GnP loadings. The friction factor of nanofluids is found to decrease with

increase in Reynolds number. For higher Reynolds number beyond 3000 the variation in friction

factor for the nanofluids is negligibly smaller compared to the base fluid due to the minimal

21
increase in the pressure drop. For laminar region especially for Re < 2000, an appreciable

increase in the friction factor is noticed for the nanofluids due to higher pressure drop. The

friction factor is reduced when the nanofluid temperature increases from 35°C to 45°C. Higher

mass flow rate significantly reduces the friction factor which is advantageous to use these

nanofluids in the turbulent region with limited penalty in the pumping power.

Fig. 10 (a) and (b). Variation of friction factor as a function of Reynolds Number

6. Summary and conclusions

The convective heat transfer coefficient and pressure drop of GnP/H 2O-EG nanofluid is

experimentally investigated for different graphene nanoplatelets loadings, inlet temperatures and

mass flow rates. The high aspect ratio and high thermal conductivity of the graphene

nanoplatelets in the basefluid enhances the thermal conductivity and thermal diffusivity upto

29% and 37% respectively for 0.5 vol%. The maximum enhancement of convective heat transfer

coefficient is found to be ~170% as compared to the basefluid. The improved thermal

22
conductivity and thermal diffusivity of dispersion, particle clustering and reduction of boundary

layer thickness could be the possible reasons for the enhancement of convective heat transfer

coefficient. Further the high aspect ratio and high thermal conductivity of nanoparticles that

participate in the energy transfer process between the fluid and the tube wall can also be a

possible reason for the enhancement of convective heat transfer coefficient. The enhancement of

convective heat transfer coefficient exceeds 100% when graphene loading increases from 0.2

vol% to 0.3 vol%. Hence it is recommended to use these nanofluids upto 0.3 vol% for such

applications with minimum enhancement of viscosity and maximum enhancement of convective

heat transfer coefficient. The pressure drop is significantly affected by the increase in mass flow

rate than that of graphene loading. The enhancement of pressure drop due to nanoplatelets is very

less in the turbulent region as compared to laminar region which is favorable to use these

nanofluids for heat transfer applications in thermal systems.

Acknowledgement

The authors acknowledge the financial support received from University Grants

Commission, New Delhi, India for conducting this study.

Nomenclature

Cp= specific heat (kJ/kgK)

k= thermal conductivity (W/mK)

Thi, Tho = hot fluid inlet and outlet temperatures (°C)

Tci, Tco = cold fluid inlet and outlet temperatures (°C)

Q= heat transfer rate (W)

23
U = overall heat transfer coefficient (w/m2 K)

h = convective heat transfer coefficient (w/m2 K)

Di = inner diameter of the outer tube (m)

do= outer diameter of the inner tube (m)

di = inner diameter of the inner tube (m)

Ai, Ao= surface area of the inner tube and outer tube (m2)

L= length of the tube (m)

Dh = hydraulic diameter (m)

V= velocity (m/s)

Greek symbols

μ= Dynamic viscosity (kg/m.s)

ρ= Density (g/cm3)

φ= volume fraction (%)

α= thermal diffusivity (m2/s)

Subscript

nf= nanofluid

w= water

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Abbreviation

GnP= graphene nanoplatelets

GnP/H2O-EG= graphene/water-ethylene glycol mixture nanofluid

EG= ethylene glycol

H2O = water

CHTC= Convective heat transfer coefficient

Re= Reynolds number

Nu= Nusselt number

vol%= volume fraction of the nanomaterial

wt%=weight fraction of the nanomaterial

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 HIGHLIGHTS

 Thermal conductivity increases linearly with respect to graphene (GnP) loading.

 Heat transfer coefficient and pressure drop of GnP/H2O-EG nanofluid are reported.

 Heat transfer coefficient increases by 170% with 0.5 vol% of graphene loading.

 Pressure drop of GnP/H2O-EG nanofluid is higher in the laminar region.

 GnP/H2O-EG nanofluids are beneficial in the turbulent region.

31