Use of water-TiO2 nanofluid in horizontal slinky collector of heat pump

Abstract

The hydrodynamics of water-TiO2 nanofluid in the Ø32×3 mm horizontal Slinky collector of the heat pump, as well as the heat transfer from river water to the nanofluid have been studied in the paper. Water-TiO2 nanofluid provides attractive opportunities of the application in the energy industry due to its enhanced thermal properties. The thermal and hydrodynamic characteristics of the heat transfer fluid with spherical TiO2 nanoparticles in the temperature range from 2 to 12.5 °C have been analysed. The numerical studies have been performed within the range of change in the nanoparticles concentration from 0.3 to 1.3 vol. %. The influence of operating temperatures of water-TiO2 nanofluid on the efficiency of the energy system of a self-sufficient house, in particular, during the heating and non-heating seasons of the heating system operation for Kyiv region has been studied. The paper provides recommendations and confirms that the limitation of the practical use of water-TiO2 nanofluid is the increase in the viscosity of the heat transfer fluid, accompanied by the increase in power for its transportation. The calculated dependencies of the performance efficiency coefficient of water-TiO2 nanofluid application in the energy system on the content of nanoparticles in the heat transfer fluid have been obtained.