Heat transfer enhancement and pressure drop characteristics of TiO2-water nanofluid in a double-tube counter flow heat exchanger

This article reports an experimental study on the forced convective heat transfer and flow characteristics of a nanofluid consisting of water and 0.2 vol.% TiO2 nanoparticles. The heat transfer coefficient and friction factor of the TiO2-water nanofluid flowing in a horizontal double-tube counter flow heat exchanger under turbulent flow conditions are investigated. The Degussa P25 TiO2 nanoparticles of about 21 nm diameter are used in the present study. The results show that the convective heat transfer coefficient of nanofluid is slightly higher than that of the base liquid by about 6-11%. The heat transfer coefficient of the nanofluid increases with an increase in the mass flow rate of the hot water and nanofluid, and increases with a decrease in the nanofluid temperature, and the temperature of the heating fluid has no significant effect on the heat transfer coefficient of the nanofluid. It is also seen that the Gnielinski equation failed to predict the heat transfer coefficient of the nanofluid. Finally, the use of the nanofluid has a little penalty in pressure drop. (C) 2009 Published by Elsevier Ltd.