DETERMINATION OF ELECTRICAL AND THERMAL CONDUCTIVITIES OF NANOFLUID PRODUCED FROM PALM KERNEL SHELLS NANOPARTICLES

Abstract

The enhancement of thermal conductivity in fluid flows in engineering equipment enhances cooling and increases the life span of such equipment. This study prepared nanoparticles from palm kernel shells. The two step method was used to prepare the nanofluid with deionized water as the basefluid. The study investigated both the electrical and thermal conductivities of the fluid and compared with that of the basefluid to determine their enhancements. The study also evaluated the nanofluid heat transfer characteristics. The effects of volume fractions and the size of particles were also investigated. Results showed that there is a nearly linear rise in electrical conductivity of the nanofluids with particle volume fraction and a significant increase in electrical conductivity enhancement was also observed. The thermal conductivity of the nanofluids also increased as the temperature and concentration of the respective volume fractions increased. The thermal conductivity enhancement increases as the volume fraction increases with the highest enhancement of 5.60% for 0.5% volume fraction. According to this research, palm kernel shells based nanofluid have the potentials to be used as an alternative to metallic oxides to produce nanofluid for heat transfer enhancement in engineering equipment for cooling purposes.