Abstract
This work aims to analyze thermal performance for an electric heater filled with different nanofluids, including SiO2-water nanofluid, Fe3O4-water nanofluid, and Cu-water nanofluid. The effect of nanoparticle concentration (0.1–2.0 wt%) is also discussed. Results indicate that Cu-water nanofluids show better heat transfer performance than the other nanofluids. The highest heating efficiency for the external environment is observed for Cu-water nanofluids with 2.0 wt% mass fraction. Cu nanoparticles show some shortcomings, such as high costs and easy oxidation. With action of a magnetic field, magnetic nanoparticles destroy the flow boundary layer close to the wall. Thermal performance of Fe3O4-water nanofluid under magnetic fields shows an ambient equilibrium temperature of 65.6 °C, which is 0.1 °C lower than that of Cu-water nanofluid. Although the heating time of Fe3O4-water nanofluid (108 min) is longer than that of Cu-water nanofluid, it provides an alternative material with low costs to achieve the high-efficient heating. This research provides economical and valuable methods to improve thermal performance of electric heating structures, and it is a promising way to reduce carbon emission from burning fossil fuels for heating supply in cities and villages, particularly if the electricity is from renewable resources.
Original language | English |
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Article number | 123966 |
Journal | Fuel |
Volume | 320 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 2022 |
Subject classification (UKÄ)
- Energy Engineering
Free keywords
- Electric heater
- Ferrofluid
- Heating efficiency
- Magnetic field
- Nanofluid