Numerical and experimental analysis of performance in a compact plate heat exchanger using graphene oxide/water nanofluid

Purpose This study aims to present the experimental and computational performance analysis in compact plate heat exchanger (PHE) using graphene oxide nanofluids at different concentrations and flow rate. Design/methodology/approach Field emission scanning electron microscope and X-ray diffraction were used to characterize graphene oxide nanoparticles. The nanofluid samples were prepared by varying volume concentration. Zeta potential test was done to check stability of samples. The thermophysical properties of samples have been experimentally measured. The experimental setup of PHE with 60 degrees chevron angle has also been developed. The numerical analysis is done using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model having similar geometry as of the actual plate. Distilled water at fixed temperature and flow rate is used in hot side tank. Nanofluid at fixed temperature with varying concentration and flow rate is used in cold side tank as coolant. Findings The numerical and experimental results were compared and found that both results were in good agreement. The results showed similar to 13% improvement in thermal conductivity, similar to 14% heat transfer rate (HTR), similar to 9% in effectiveness and similar to 10% in overall heat transfer coefficient at cost of pressure drop and pumping power using nanofluid. Exergy loss also decreased using nanofluid at optimum concentration of 1 Vol.%. Originality/value The CFD model can be significant to analyze temperature, pressure and flow distribution in heat exchanger which is impossible otherwise. This study gives ease to predict PHE performance with high accuracy without performing the experiment.

Automated summary

This study presents experimental and computational performance analysis in compact plate heat exchanger using graphene oxide nanofluids at different concentrations and flow rates. The results show improvements in thermal conductivity, heat transfer rate, effectiveness, and overall heat transfer coefficient with the use of nanofluids. The CFD model is significant for predicting PHE performance accurately without the need for extensive experiments.