Experimental investigation on the thermophysical properties of beryllium oxide-based nanofluid and nano-enhanced phase change material

Low thermal conductivity is a primary issue in the development of efficient heat transfer fluids and materials required for the thermal management of various systems. In this work, beryllium oxide nanoparticles of size 15-25nm and surface area 88 m(2)g(-1) were synthesized by polyacrylamide gel route to prepare nanofluid and nano-enhanced phase change material with enhanced thermal properties. The thermal conductivity and viscosity of the nanofluids show a linear increase with the BeO particle concentration, and a maximum thermal conductivity enhancement of 39% was obtained for 2 vol% nanofluid compared to its base fluid (deionized water). Similarly, the thermal conductivity, thermal diffusivity and latent heat capacity of the nano-enhanced phase change material were also found to be increased up to 15%, 30% and 23%, respectively, for 2 vol% BeO nano-enhanced phase change material compared to the base material (polyethylene glycol). The inferred results show that the BeO nanoparticle has a significant influence in the increased thermal properties of nano-enhanced fluids and phase change materials, and thus can be used as a potential heat transfer materials in thermal applications.