Thermal Conductivity of Nano-fluids in Nano-channels

Abstract The behaviour of an Argon-copper nano-fluid spatially restricted in a nano-channel is studied by using Molecular Dynamics simulations. Specifically, the channel size and particle loading effects on nano-fluids thermal conductivity are investigated. A direct comparison is made between the calculated results and the prediction of classical macroscopic models with the latter under-estimating the computed values by up to 20%. The thermal conductivity enhancement is correlated with the structure of Argon atoms close to the walls of the channel and around the particle, whose solid like nature enables them to propagate heat more efficiently