Copper nanoparticles and carbon nanotubes have been found to enhance the thermal conductivity of base fluids dramatically. Adding 0.3 vol.% of 10-nm copper nanoparticles to ethylene glycol increased its thermal conductivity up to 40%. Nanotubes yield by far the highest thermal conductivity enhancement ever achieved in a liquid: a 150% increase in the conductivity of oil at 1 vol.% of 25- nm nanotubes. More interestingly, the thermal conductivity enhancement with the nanotubes is an order of magnitude higher than predicted by existing theories. This discovery clearly suggests that conventional heat conduction models for solid/liquid suspensions are inadequate. Several mechanisms that could be responsible for thermal transport in nanofluids have been proposed. However, the mysteries of nanoparticles in fluids remain unsolved, presenting new opportunities and challenges for scientists and engineers. Nanofluid research could lead to a major breakthrough in solid/liquid composites for numerous engineering applications, such as coolant for automobiles, air conditioning, and supercomputers.
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