Deterioration in effective thermal conductivity of aqueous magnetic nanofluids

Common heat transfer fluids have low thermal conductivities, which decrease their efficiency in many applications. On the other hand, solids have much higher thermal conductivity values. Previously, it was shown that the addition of different nanoparticles to various base fluids increases the thermal conductivity of the carrier fluid remarkably. However, there are limited studies that focus on the thermal conductivity of magnetic fluids. In this study, thermal conductivity of magnetic nanofluids composed of magnetite nanoparticles synthesized via co-precipitation and thermal decomposition methods is investigated. Results showed that the addition of magnetite nanoparticles decreased the thermal conductivity of water and ethylene glycol. This decrease was found to increase with increasing particle concentration and to be independent of the synthesis method, the type of surfactant, and the interfacial thermal resistance. (C) 2014 AIP Publishing LLC.