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The thermal conductivity of alumina nanofluids in water, ethylene glycol, and ethylene glycol + water mixtures

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Abstract

We present new data on the thermal conductivity of nanofluids consisting of alumina nanoparticles dispersed in water, ethylene glycol, and ethylene glycol + water mixtures. We also demonstrate that our previously published model is able to describe the temperature, particle size, and particle volume fraction dependence of these nanofluids without any adjustable parameters, irrespective of the base fluid used (water, ethylene glycol, or water + ethylene glycol mixtures). Furthermore, we demonstrate how the model may be used to check the consistency of literature data on all alumina nanofluids.

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Abbreviations

A :

Constant

d :

Average diameter of particle (nm)

k :

Thermal conductivity (W m−1 K−1)

T :

Temperature (K)

α:

Thermal diffusivity of liquid (m2 s−1)

ϕ :

Volume fraction

ξ:

Thermal conductivity enhancement

o:

Limiting value for large particles

gm:

Geometric mean

P:

Particle

l:

Liquid

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Correspondence to Amyn S. Teja.

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Beck, M.P., Yuan, Y., Warrier, P. et al. The thermal conductivity of alumina nanofluids in water, ethylene glycol, and ethylene glycol + water mixtures. J Nanopart Res 12, 1469–1477 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11051-009-9716-9

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