Leitung: Prof. Dr.

Friedrich Dinkelacker

Diploma / Bachelor / Master Thesis

Numerical Simulation of Natural Convection by using Nanofluids

Figure: Natural Convection in Square Cavity –

Temperature Distributions

In natural convection, a fluid (air or water) circulates between a warm and a cold wall due to the density difference.
This physical effect is also called as force of gravity circulation. The density variation is maintained by heating up
on the one side and cooling on the other side. According to ideal gas law, the density difference can be related
proportionally to pressure difference. The resulting pressure difference is called as "driving or effective pressure". In
this work, the heat transfer enhancement in a differentially heated enclosure using variable thermal conductivity
and variable viscosity of CuO-water nanofluids will be investigated. The results will presented for a wide range of
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Rayleigh numbers in the turbulent regime (Ra > 10 ). Also, a wide range of volume fractions of nanoparticles (0 ≤ φ
≤ 9) will be studied. The average Nusselt number of a CuO-water nanofluid will be studied to investigate the effect
of nanoparticles on heat transfer enhancement in differentially heated enclosure in the turbulent regime.

Task description
• Litrature survey of natural convection
• Simulation of natural convection by using existing models in ANSYS FLUENT
• Evaluation of the CFD data and comparison with measurements
• CFD simulation with a new natural convection model by using nanofluids

Requirement profile
• Students of mechanical engineering, process engineering, production engineering or other comparable
fields of study
• Good Communication and collaboration
• Working independently
• Good English knowledge
• Good PC-Skills (MS Office)
• Knowledge of thermodynamics, heat and mass transfer and fluid dynamics

Contact person ITV Contact person ITV

Herr Prof. Dr. Eiyad Abu-Nada Herr Sven Jollet
30167 Hannover 30167 Hannover
Tel.: +49 (511) – 762 2245 Tel.: +49 (511) – 762 19835
E-Mail: eiyad@itv.uni-hannover.de E-Mail: jollet@itv.uni-hannover.de

Institut für Technische Verbrennung – Leibniz Universität Hannover – Welfengarten 1a – 30167 Hannover – Germany
Tel.: 0511 / 762-2418 – E-Mail: office@itv.uni-hannover.de – Web: www.itv.uni-hannover.de