Affiliation:
1. Mechanical Engineering Department University of Michigan Flint MI 48502 USA
2. Mechanical Engineering Department University of Sharjah UAE
3. Mechanical Engineering Department University of California Riverside CA 92521 vafai@engr.ucr.edu
Abstract
This chapter provides in-depth information on the use of nanofluids for various solar thermal systems, of which flat plate collectors, solar stills, photovoltaic thermal systems, and parabolic trough solar collectors are examples. The first portion of this chapter offers the most up-to-date overview of correlations discovered in the literature for nanofluid thermal parameters such as density, specific heat, viscosity, thermal expansion coefficient, and thermal conductivity. The second segment concentrates on the usage of nanofluids in various energy systems. This chapter also examines and discusses energy and exergy analysis. Using energy and exergy analysis, the performance of flat plate solar collectors using nanofluids is shown. This chapter compares works in the literature based on energy and exergy efficiency, as well as the nanofluid utilized in the collector, which is also studied and discussed. According to the available literature, adding nanoparticles to the base fluid improves the performance of the collector in terms of energy and exergy efficiency. This chapter thus serves as a reference for researchers working in the field of solar energy to improve the thermal performance of solar thermal systems.
Publisher
The Royal Society of Chemistry