Nanoscale materials for increasing the performance of cooling systems

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A cooling system is essential for preserving the functional integrity of various technologies including: internal combustion engines, mining equipment, electric vehicles, and computers. In a liquid cooling system, fluid is circulated in a network of tubes that extracts heat from the device using convective heat transfer. Fluid is propelled within the tubes using a pump, and heat is expelled from the system using a radiator. This project will carry out proof-of-concept experimentation to develop a nanoscale material that reduces the energy consumed by the pump and improve the overall efficiency of the cooling system.The pump in a cooling system consumes energy to overcome the fluid friction generated by the turbulent flow within the tubes. The size of the turbulent eddies range from large (comparable to the tube diameter) to very small (micrometers in size). It has been shown that certain nanoscale materials can damp the smaller turbulent eddies, thus reducing the fluid friction. However, mitigating turbulence can adversely affect convective heat transfer of the flow, making it difficult to remove the unwanted thermal energy from the device. Therefore, to increase the overall performance of the cooling system, the nanoscale materials must be optimized for both reducing fluid friction and preserving the heat-transfer properties of existing coolant fluids.To achieve this goal, we will develop a flow loop that simulates a standard cooling system of a vehicle. We will evaluate the performance of various nanostructured materials by measuring the required pumping power and their cooling capabilities in this system. Additional material characterization and optimization will also be carried out by measuring pressure losses and heat transfer in a turbulent channel flow. The outcome of this project is nanostructured material for coolant fluids that can be used to improve the efficiency of cooling systems used in combustion vehicles, electric vehicles, heavy industrial equipment and electronics.