Particle concentration and tube size dependence of viscosities of Al2O3-water nanofluids flowing through micro- and minitubes

An experimental and theoretical investigation has been performed on the effective viscosity of Al2O3-water nanofluids flowing through micrometer- and millimeter-sized circular tubes in the fully developed laminar flow regime. We have discovered that the effective viscosity of Al2O3-water nanofluids increases nonlinearly with the volume concentration of nanoparticles even in the very low range of 0.02-0.3 vol % and strongly depends on the ratio of the nanoparticle diameter to the tube diameter. We have developed a modified Einstein model that accounts for the slip mechanism in nanofluids. The new model captures these new rheological features of nanofluids. (C) 2007 American Institute of Physics.