A New Thermodynamic and Heat Transfer Model for Nanolubricants and Refrigerant Heat Transfer Processes in Smooth Copper Tubes

Abstract

In air conditioning systems, lubricating oil leaves the compressor and circulates through the other system components. This lubricant acts as a contaminant affecting heat transfer in heat exchangers. The literature indicated that mixtures of refrigerants and nanolubricants, that is, nanoparticles dispersed in the lubricant oils, have potentials to augment heat transfer exchange effectiveness. However, the nanoparticle mechanisms leading to such heat transfer changes are still unclear and not well included in the models. In this work, an existing single-phase forced flow convective heat transfer model, originally developed for water-based nanofluids, was modified to include the effects of diffusion and mass balance of different shape nanoparticles within the laminar sublayer and turbulent layer of the flow. A new physics-based superposition heat transfer model for saturated two-phase flow boiling of refrigerant and nanolubricants was also developed by integrating the modified forced flow convective heat transfer model and a semi-empirical pool boiling model for nanolubricants. The new model included the several physical effects that influenced heat transfer, such as slip mechanisms at the nanoparticles and base fluid interface and its influence on the laminar sublayer thickness, momentum transfer from the nanoparticles to the growing bubbles, and formation of lubricant excess concentration at the tube surface and its influence on bubble growth and tube wetting. The new model was validated for single-phase convective heat transfer and two-phase flow boiling of refrigerant R410A with two nanolubricants, having nonspherical ZnO nanoparticles and spherical Al2O3 nanoparticles.