Materials Science for Energy Technologies 2 (2019) 161–170

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Materials Science for Energy Technologies

CHINESE ROOTS
GLOBAL IMPACT
journal homepage: www.keaipublishing.com/en/journals/materials-science-for-energy-technologies

Intensified convective heat transfer using ZnO nanofluids in heat

exchanger with helical coiled geometry at constant wall temperature
R.N. Radkar a, B.A. Bhanvase a,⇑, D.P. Barai a, S.H. Sonawane b
a
Department of Chemical Engineering, Laxminarayan Institute of Technology, Rashtrasant Tukadoji Maharaj Nagpur University, Nagpur 440033, MS, India
b
Department of Chemical Engineering, National Institute of Technology, Warangal 506004, Telangna State, India

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: The present work deals with the experimental determination of enhancement in the heat transfer using
Received 19 December 2018 ZnO nanofluid in helical copper tube heat exchanger at constant wall temperature. ZnO nanoparticles
Revised 22 January 2019 were prepared with aid of ultrasonic irradiations using zinc nitrate and KOH as raw materials. The effect
Accepted 25 January 2019
of Reynolds number and ZnO nanoparticle addition to the base fluid on heat transfer coefficient and
Available online 13 February 2019
Nusselt number was examined. Around 62.80% and 136% enhancement in thermal conductivity ratio
at 40 °C and 50 °C, respectively, was observed for 0.5 vol% loading of ZnO nanoparticles in nanofluids.
Keywords:
18.6% enhancement in the Nusselt number was observed for 0.25 vol% of ZnO nanoparticles in nanofluid
ZnO Nanofluid
Ultrasound
at the exit of the test section. This is attributed to the combination of helical coil with ZnO nanofluid
Thermal conductivity which gives significant effect on heat transfer enhancement.
Heat transfer coefficient Ó 2019 The Authors. Production and hosting by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of KeAi Communications Co., Ltd.
Nusselt number This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-
nd/4.0/).

1. Introduction The wide range of applications of such nanofluids includes uses

Intensification of heat transfer has always been very essential in
process industries due to the ever increasing need of energy con-
servation. Different types of heat exchangers are being used in
industries for diverse kinds of processes and purposes. These heat
exchangers utilize conventional type of heat transfer fluids such as
water, ethylene glycol (EG) etc. so as to carry the heat and these
fluids have less capability of heat transfer. The time changed when
it was realized that solids dispersed in liquids show high thermal
conductivity than the liquids alone [1]. Since then, many research-
ers tried to make use of fluids containing solid particles as heat
transfer fluids. But, due to large size of these solid particles, many
drawbacks like clogging, settling and erosion were observed [2].
That is when Choi [3] came up with fluids containing solids parti-
cles that are nano-sized, called as nanofluids which have fully
changed the situation. Thus, nanofluids were prepared by many
researchers to study the thermal conductivity enhancement that
they provide [4–6]. Metal oxides based nanofluids like those of
TiO2 [7], CuO [8], Fe3O4 [9], Al2O3 and SiO2 [10] have also been
widely studied and found to be augmenting the thermal
conductivity.
⇑ Corresponding author.
E-mail addresses: bharatbhanvase@gmail.com, ba.bhanvase@nagpuruniversity.
nic.in (B.A. Bhanvase).
in automobiles [11–13], solar energy systems [14,15], electronics
[16] etc. ZnO based nanofluids have also found to be having role
as car radiator coolant [17], antibacterial agent [18,19], coolant in
electronics [20] etc. Similarly, ZnO based nanofluids also find appli-
cations in thermal conductivity enhancement [21]. Yu et al. [22]
synthesized EG/ZnO nanofluid and reported 26.5% enhancement
in thermal conductivity of nanofluid at concentration of 5 vol%.
The reported thermal conductivity of ZnO nanofluids remained
independent of the setting time in the range 20 min–360 min at
temperature of 30 . Pool boiling tests were conducted by Mour-
gues et al. [23] using 0.01 vol% concentration of ZnO nanofluid.
Further, 54% increase in critical heat flux caused by the wettability,
porosity or capillary wicking of the heating surface occurring has
been reported which is because of the deposition of the nanoparti-
cles either coming from the nanofluid or present initially as a depo-
sition on the surface. Jeong et al. [24] noticed the significant impact
of shape of ZnO nanoparticles on the resultant thermal conductiv-
ity of nanofluid. The reported thermal conductivity enhancement
was 12% for spherical-shaped ZnO nanoaparticles and 18% for rect-
angular shaped ZnO nanoparticles for 5 vol% ZnO/water nanofluid
concentration. Suganthi et al. [25] prepared EG/ZnO and water-
EG/ZnO nanofluids to study their heat transfer performance. The
report shows 33.4% boost in the thermal conductivity for 4 vol%
ZnO nanofluid prepared using EG and 17.26% was reported for
2 vol% ZnO nanofluid using water-EG mixture as base fluid. Also,

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mset.2019.01.007
2589-2991/Ó 2019 The Authors. Production and hosting by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of KeAi Communications Co., Ltd.
This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
162 R.N. Radkar et al. / Materials Science for Energy Technologies 2 (2019) 161–170
Nomenclature
Ax Inside surface area of the helical coil at distance x
C Pnf Heat Capacity of ZnO nanofluid
D Inside diameter of helical coiled tube
Dc Diameter of helix
hiðcoilÞ Heat Transfer coefficient estimated in helical coiled tube
hiðstraightÞ Heat Transfer coefficient estimated in straight tube
it has been reported that both the nanofluids have heat transfer
characteristics of higher quality than their respective base fluids
showing proportionate enhancement in heat transfer with thermal
conductivity. Suganthi and Rajan [26] have studied the heat trans-
fer characteristics under the condition of constant heat flux using
ZnO-propylene glycol nanofluids. It has been reported that the
nanofluids show linearly increasing relationship of heat removal
with loading of ZnO nanoparticles in the base fluid for given condi-
tion of constant heat flux. Also, increase in the heat transfer rate
was reported to be 4.24% for 2 vol% of ZnO-propylene glycol
nanofluid.
In a heat exchanger, there are many factors that affect the effi-
ciency of the heat transport. Numerous efforts are devoted by the
researchers to intensify the rate of heat transfer in the heat
exchangers which include suction or injection of fluids, vibration
of the heating surfaces and electrical and magnetic field applica-
tion [27]. Also, different geometries may affect the performance
of the heat exchanger. Helically coiled heat exchanger geometry
has been used by some researchers for heat transfer study using
nanofluids [28–31]. Heat exchangers with helical coil geometry
are found to be in limelight in the field of heat transfer due to their
capability of letting secondary flow inside the tubes thus intensify-
ing the heat transfer [32]. Khairul et al. [33] has presented a ther-
modynamic second law analysis using ZnO/water nanofluids and
other two metal oxide based nanofluids in a heat exchanger with
helical coiled geometry.
Acoustic cavitation during the synthesis of nanoparticles may
have positive effects on the size of the nanoparticles. This is due
to the hotspots generated which assists in the formation of parti-
cles having size in the nano-range. Lee et al. [21] used the pulsed
wire evaporation technique for synthesizing ZnO nanoparticles
which produced nanoparticles of sizes between 90 and 100 nm.
It means that a little increase in the size of ZnO nanoparticles pro-
duced by pulsed wire evaporation method shall disapprove their
existence as nanoparticles. And their behavior may shift towards
that of the micro-sized particles. Jeong et al. [24] studied the ther-
mal conductivity of nanofluid containing spherical shaped ZnO
nanoparticles of size between 87 and 150 nm and found that
3 vol% of the ZnO nanofluid concentration possesses a thermal con-
ductivity ratio of 1.075 which is comparable to thermal conductiv-
ity ratio of 1.094 found by Suganthi et al. [25] for 1 vol% ZnO
nanofluid containing spherical ZnO nanoparticles synthesized by
chemical precipitation method having size between 25 and
40 nm at nearly same temperature. So, it can be claimed that there
is nearly 3 times lesser requirement of the ZnO nanoparticles if size
reduces from 80 to 150 nm to 25–40 nm. Thus, smaller-sized ZnO
nanoparticles possess superior thermal properties and thus there
is a lesser requirement of the nanoparticle concentration in the
nanofluid. This shows that the size of ZnO nanoparticles have a
big impact on its thermal properties which depends on its synthe-
sis process.
In literature, very few studies have been reported on enrich-
ment in the heat transfer performance in helical coiled heat
exchangers utilizing metal oxide based nanofluids. Also, there is
m_ Mass flow rate of ZnO nanofluid (kg/s)
qs(x) Heat flux
Tb(x) Bulk fluid temperature at ‘x’
Ts(x) Wall temperature at ‘x’
Tbi Inlet temperature of bulk fluid
Tbo Outlet temperature of bulk fluid
no past record of studies on heat exchanger having helical coiled
geometry employing ZnO nanofluids prepared by means of hydro-
dynamic cavitation containing ultrasonically synthesized ZnO
nanoparticles. The present study reports the investigation of con-
vective heat transfer performance with the use of ZnO nanofluid
in heat exchanger having helical coiled geometry. For this purpose,
the ZnO nanoparticles were prepared using ultrasonication assis-
tance. During ultrasonication, cavities gets formed and collapsed
which causes diffusional currents promoting efficient contact of
the reactants leading to synthesis of nanosized particles. Ultrason-
ication involves generation of hotspots having very high tempera-
ture and pressure conditions which favors the reaction and leads to
formation of very tiny particles. Further, the investigation of the
thermal conductivity of ZnO nanofluids at various concentration
of ZnO nanoparticles in basefluid was studied as a function of tem-
perature. For the purpose of convective heat transfer studies,
trends in heat transfer coefficient and also in Nusselt number were
investigated along axial length of helical coil for various volume %
of ZnO nanoparticles and Reynolds number of the prepared ZnO
nanofluid.
2. Experimental
2.1. Materials
Zinc nitrate hexahydrate (99%) of analytical reagent grade (AR)
and glacial acetic acid (100%) were obtained from Meru Chem Pvt.
Ltd, Mumbai. Analytical grade potassium hydroxide (99%) was
obtained from S. D. Fine-chem Ltd, Mumbai, India. Distilled water
was used for the preparation of nanofluids and also during all
the experimentation.
2.2. Ultrasound assisted synthesis of zinc oxide nanoparticles
In this work, ZnO nanoparticles were synthesized as per the
method given by Ghorbani et al. [34] but in the presence of horn
type sonicator (Make: Dakshin Ultrasonics, India) having a fixed
frequency of 22 KHz and power set at 240 W. In a typical experi-
ment for the preparation of zinc oxide nanoparticles, 30 mL KOH
solution (0.4 M) was gradually added to 30 mL zinc nitrate aqueous
solution (0.2 M) at room temperature. This was carried out in
5 min under ultrasonic irradiations, which give rise to formation
of a white suspension. This reaction was continued for 1 h in the
presence of ultrasonication. The obtained white product was sepa-
rated with the use of centrifugation operated at 5000 rpm for
20 min. Further, the obtained product was washed three times
with distilled water and once with absolute alcohol. The obtained
product after washing stage was calcined at 500 °C for 3 h which
led to the formation of ZnO nanoparticles. Fig. 1 depicts the flow
diagram for the ZnO nanoparticles synthesis. The reaction mecha-
nism for the formation of ZnO nanoparticles is reported in Eq. (1).
D
ZnðNO3 Þ2 þ 2KOH ! ZnðOHÞ2 þ 2KNO3 ! ZnO þ H2 O ð1Þ
 R.N. Radkar et al. / Materials Science for Energy Technologies 2 (2019) 161–170 163

Fig. 1. Process flow sheet of ultrasound assisted preparation of ZnO nanoparticles.

2.3. Characterization of ZnO nanoparticles

In the present work, the structural analysis of ZnO nanoparticles

was done with X-ray powder diffractometer (XRD) (Rigaku Mini-
Flex X-ray diffractometer). UV/Vis spectrum of ZnO nanoparticles
synthesized using ultrasound assisted method was obtained on
UV/VIS Spectrophotometer (LABINDIA UV3200 model). The mor-
phology of ZnO nanoparticles was studied using EVO 18 SEM
Research scanning microscope (CARL ZESSI, Germany) at magnifi-
cation of 10000X and 23000X. The TEM image of ZnO nanoparticles
was captured using Transmission Electron Microscopy (Make:
Hitachi, Japan, Model: H-7500, 40–120 kV, magnification
300000X). The estimation of thermal conductivity of ZnO nanoflu-
ids was performed with the use of KD2 Pro Thermal Properties
Analyzer (KD2 Pro, Decagon Devices Inc., USA).

2.4. Preparation of ZnO nanofluids using hydrodynamic cavitation

In this work, for the preparation of stable ZnO nanofluid hydro-

dynamic cavitation was used. For the preparation of various vol-
ume % of ZnO nanofluid, different loading of ZnO nanoparticles
was accomplished in distilled water. The amount of ZnO nanopar-
ticles required for the various volume % of ZnO nanofluids was esti-
mated with the use of Eq. (2).

wZnO =qZnO
Volume % of nanofluid ¼
Total Volume of Nanofluid Solution
 100
ð2Þ
where, wZnO = amount of ZnO nanoparticles required in g.
qZnO = density of ZnO nanoparticles in g/cm3
The line diagram of hydrodynamic cavitation setup used for the
preparation of ZnO nanofluid is depicted in Fig. 2. In this process,
cavities were generated by passing the liquid through constriction
i.e. orifice plate. A centrifugal pump having power of 1 HP was used
for circulating the liquid through the hydrodynamic cavitation sys-
tem. The kinetic energy of the circulating liquid increased as it is
passed through an orifice at the cost of local pressure. The genera-
tion of cavities takes place at throat or vena contracta when pres-
sure of liquid decreases below vapour pressure and its collapse
takes place when the pressure at downstream recovers which gen-
erates remarkable energy (temperature 10000 K and pressure
1000 atm) that leads to high turbulence and shearing action in
the liquid medium [35–37]. Turbulence and shearing action gener-
ated due to cavity collapse is responsible for the desired properties
of ZnO nanofluid and the obtained nanofluid was with uniformly
dispersed ZnO nanoparticles in water generating stable and long
lasting suspension with minimum agglomeration of ZnO nanopar-
ticles in obtained nanofluid. In the present work, ZnO nanofluids
(5 L) were prepared by changing concentrations of ZnO nanoparti-
cles in the nanofluids without addition of any surfactant in hydro-
Fig. 2. Hydrodynamic Cavitation setup line diagram using for the preparation of
ZnO/water nanofluids.
dynamic cavitation. The mixture was passed through the
hydrodynamic cavitation system for 10 min in order to prepare
the stable ZnO nanofluid. This time was sufficient to achieve the
desired degree of stability of the ZnO nanofluid. The flowrate
through the hydrodynamic cavitation system was maintained by
adjusting using the valve located on bypass line. In the present
study, 0.05, 0.10, 0.15, 0.20 and 0.25 vol% ZnO nanofluids were pre-
pared at different concentration of ZnO nanoparticles in order to
examine the influence of volume % on thermal conductivity and
convective heat transfer coefficient.
2.5. Thermal conductivity measurement of ZnO based nanofluid
Thermal Properties Analyzer (KD2 Pro, Decagon Devices Inc.,
USA) instrument was used to investigate the thermal conductivity
of ZnO nanofluids. This instrument works on the fundamentals of
the transient hot-wire source approach for measurement of ther-
mal conductivity. The estimation of the thermal conductivity was
accomplished with the use of thermal probe (1.27-mm diameter,
60-mm length) which was inserted in ZnO nanofluid vertically.
This instrument takes 2 min for displaying results and thus the
thermal conductivity readings were recorded. The thermal conduc-
tivity of ZnO nanofluid for various volume percentages of ZnO
nanoparticles in the nanofluids was obtained and reported in the
manuscript.
164 R.N. Radkar et al. / Materials Science for Energy Technologies 2 (2019) 161–170

2.6. Heat transfer equipment setup, procedure and measurements Table 1

Details of parameters varied during convective heat transfer study in the helical
coiled heat exchanger.
The investigation on the convective heat transfer was accom-
plished in copper tube heat exchanger having helical coiled geom- Sr. No. Concentration of nanofluid Flow rate Reynolds
etry with the use of ZnO nanoparticle based nanofluids and the (vol. %) (m3/s) number

schematics of the experimental setup is depicted Fig. 3. A similar 1 0.05 1.11  105 1083
experimental method reported in our previous study [30,31] was 2 0.10 1.39  105 1354
3 0.15 1.67  105 1625
used for this study with some modifications. As depicted in 4 0.20 1.94  105 1896
Fig. 3, this experimental setup comprised of nanofluid tank, pump, 5 0.25 2.22  105 2167
rotameter, test section which is a helical coil with internal and out-
side diameter of 13 mm and 15 mm respectively, a temperature
indicator and cooler. The length of the tube used in the test section 3. Results and discussion
was 10 m with helical coil diameter 290 mm and pitch 35 mm. The
J-type thermocouples were located on the helical coil at different 3.1. XRD, UV-Visible, SEM and TEM analysis of ultrasonically prepared
locations in order to measure the metal tube inner surface temper- ZnO nanoparticles
ature and fluid temperature at same location. In order to investi-
gate the convective heat transfer, the Reynolds numbers were Fig. 4 shows the XRD pattern of sonochemically prepared ZnO
selected in the range of 1083 to 2167 which were in laminar nanoparticle. A highly crystalline structure of the prepared ZnO
region. Also, the range of volume % of ZnO nanoparticles in ZnO nanoparticles was observed as evident from the XRD pattern in
nanofluid selected was 0.05 to 0.25. Details of the parameters var- which sharp peaks of high intensity extend over the 2h scale. The
ied are depicted in Table 1. The test section consisting of helical coil characteristic peaks observed at 2h equal to 31.60, 34.20, 36.04,
and thermocouples was maintained at constant wall temperature. 47.40, 56.40, 62.70 and 67.80° correspond to the lattice planes
The physical properties of ZnO nanoparticles based nanofluids such (1 0 0), (0 0 2), (1 0 1), (1 0 2), (1 1 0), (1 0 3) and (1 1 2), respec-
as density, heat capacity, viscosity, thermal conductivity etc. were tively, indicative of wurtzite hexagonal structure of ZnO nanopar-
estimated using correlations depicted by Bhanvase et al. [30] and ticles [38]. All the peaks were as per the standard JCPDS card no.
Fule et al. [31]. Following were the correlations used for measure- 36–1451. Further, the crystallite size corresponding to the (1 0 1)
ment of heat flux, heat transfer coefficient, and Nusselt number at plane (36.04°) estimated using Scherer’s formula (Eq. (7)) [39]
distance ‘x’ from inlet in a straight tube, helical coil: was 5.564 nm.
_ Pnf ðT b;o  T b;i Þ
mC
qS ðxÞ ¼ ð3Þ kk
Ax d¼ ð7Þ
bcosh
qS ðxÞ
hðxÞ ¼ ð4Þ where d is crystallite size, b is full-width at half-maximum height
T S ðxÞ  T b ðxÞ
(FWHM), k = 0.9, and h = glancing angle, k = 1.5405 A._
  UV–vis absorption spectrum of sonochemically synthesized
D
hiðcoilÞ ¼ hiðstraightÞ  1 þ 3:5 ð5Þ ZnO nanoparticles at room temperature is depicted in Fig. 5. The
Dc
characteristic peak at 375 nm reveals the successful formation of
hiðcoilÞD ZnO nanoparticles by ultrasound assisted method and this can be
NuðcoilÞ ¼ ð6Þ allocated to the transition of electrons from valence band to the
k
conduction band (O2p ? Zn3d) which leads to the intrinsic band-
gap absorption of ZnO [38].

Fig. 3. Schematic of experimental setup for study of convective heat transfer enhancement using ZnO nanofluid.
 R.N. Radkar et al. / Materials Science for Energy Technologies 2 (2019) 161–170
Fig. 4. XRD analysis for ZnO nanoparticles prepared by ultrasound assisted process.
Fig. 5. UV/Vis. Spectrum of ZnO nanoparticles prepared by ultrasound assisted
process.
Fig. 6 shows the SEM images of sonochemically prepared ZnO
nanoparticles at diverse magnification. A uniform size and shape
of finely dispersed ZnO nanoparticles has been observed without
any agglomeration of the similar sized nanoparticles. This is attrib-
uted to the physical effects of ultrasound. Further substantial
decrease in the particles size and agglomeration of ultrasonically
synthesized ZnO nanoparticles is witnessed. One of the possible
reasons is the cavitational effects caused due to ultrasound. The
reduced particle size of ZnO nanoparticles is due to rapid nucle-
ation i.e. lesser induction period and more nucleation events which
has better control on the ZnO crystal growth rate during the chem-
ical precipitation accompanied by ultrasonic irradiations [40].
Fig. 7 depicts the morphological analysis i.e. TEM image of sono-
chemically prepared ZnO nanoparticles. The particle size of sono-
chemically prepared ZnO nanoparticles observed from TEM
image is around 15 nm which is substantially smaller in the pres-
ence of ultrasound. Also TEM of ZnO nanoparticle shows monodis-
persed morphology which is again attributed to cavitational events
due to ultrasound. The possible reasons are reported earlier. In the
SEM images, the material appears as nanotubes, but the TEM image
clearly shows nanoparticles of ZnO attached to each other. The rea-
son for the appearance of the ZnO particles as nanotubes in SEM is
because of the formation of chain-like structures of the particles
due to their attachment to each other.
3.2. Effect of temperature and concentration of nanofluid on thermal
conductivity ratio
Fig. 8 depicts the thermal conductivity ratio of ZnO nanoparticle
based nanofluid at different temperature for various volume % of
the nanofluid. The thermal conductivity ratio of different concen-
165
Fig. 6. SEM image of ZnO nanoparticles at 10000X and 23000X prepared by
ultrasound assisted process.
tration of ZnO nanofluid was found to be increasing with an
increase in temperature and loading of ZnO nanoparticles. The
thermal conductivity ratio was found to be 0.87 at 36 °C for
0.5 vol% concentration and it increased to 1.5 at 50 °C. Further,
Fig. 8 depicts linear nature of the thermal conductivity with
respect to temperature for different volume % of ZnO nanoparticles
in base fluid i.e. water which shows well dispersed nature of ZnO
nanoparticles in water which is attributed to cavitation effect
[25,26]. The % enhancement in the thermal conductivity ratio
was around 62.80% at 40 °C for 0.5 vol% loading of ZnO nanoparti-
cles in nanofluids. Further, % enhancement in thermal conductivity
ratio increased to 136% at 50 °C for 0.5 vol% loading of ZnO
nanoparticles in nanofluids. This is accomplished due to the
enhanced Brownian motion of sonochemically prepared ZnO
nanoparticles in the nanofluid at high temperature thereby
increasing its thermal conductivity ratio. Further, enhancement
in the thermal conductivity ratio with respect to increase in load-
ing of ZnO nanoparticles in nanofluid is due to the presence of lar-
ger amount of ZnO nanoparticles in nanofluid exhibiting larger
effect of heat conduction in the nanofluid. The various reasons
behind the enhancement in the thermal conductivity ratio are
explained as follows. (a) The increased concentration of ZnO
nanoparticles in the nanofluids can bring ZnO nanoparticles closer
to each other allowing the exchange of electrons and protons
which enhances the lattice vibration frequency which in turn leads
166 R.N. Radkar et al. / Materials Science for Energy Technologies 2 (2019) 161–170
Fig. 7. TEM image of ZnO nanoparticles prepared by ultrasound assisted process at 300000X.
Fig. 8. Thermal conductivity ratio of ZnO based nanofluids with water as the base
fluid with respect to temperature at different vol.%.
to the enhancement in the heat conduction in ZnO nanofluids
known to be as the percolation effect [41–43]. (b) Also, the
enhanced dispersion of the ZnO nanoparticles in water with the
use of hydrodynamic cavitation increases the Brownian motion
of nanoparticles which increases with temperature of ZnO nanoflu-
ids and leads to enhancement in the thermal conductivity ratio of
nanofluids [44]. (c) The third reason is the formation of liquid
molecules’ nano-layered structure on the surface of ZnO nanopar-
ticles which helps in the transporting heat from ZnO nanoparticles
to the liquid present near to particles leading to formation of
homogeneous suspension and this phenomenon plays a very
essential role in the enhancement in the thermal conductivity ratio
[45].
3.3. Validation of experimental setup
The accuracy and consistency of the experimental setup used in
this study was verified. For the same experimental setup, determi-
nation of Nusselt number using distilled water as the working fluid
was done and this setup was used to examine the heat transfer
characteristics using ZnO nanoparticles based nanofluids. The
experiments were carried out at Reynolds Numbers equal
to 1354 and 1625. The comparison between experimentally
 R.N. Radkar et al. / Materials Science for Energy Technologies 2 (2019) 161–170
measured Nusselt number values obtained using the theoretical
solution given by Shah [46] under constant wall temperature
was done. These equations are reported in Fule et al. [31]. The
experimental results show considerable agreement with the Shah’s
correlations, which is depicted in Fig. 9.
3.4. Effect of volume % of ZnO nanoparticles in nanofluid
The reported literature depicts the addition of various nanopar-
ticles in the basefluid shows intensification in heat transfer coeffi-
cient and in turn in the Nusselt number [30,31,47–49]. Fig. 10
demonstrates the impact of volume % of ZnO nanoparticles (0.05,
0.10, 0.15, 0.20 and 0.25 vol%) on local heat transfer coefficients
for ZnO nanofluids at Reynolds number of 1896. At the entry of
the test section, the heat transfer coefficient was found to be
increasing from 587.5 to 965.20 W/m2 °C for increase in the con-
centration of ZnO nanoparticles from 0 to 0.25 vol%. This signifi-
cant augmentation in heat transfer coefficient at the entry of the
test section is due to entrance effect. The entrance effect refers to
the fact that at the entry of the test section, the flow does not expe-
rience any kind of boundary layer formation as it is suddenly
exposed to the flow boundaries. This causes maximum transfer
of heat leading to a higher values of heat transfer coefficient and
Nusselt number. The obtained value of heat transfer coefficient is
310.95 W/m2 °C for distilled water at the exit of test section (at
x/Di = 769.2) and it increased to 368.3 W/m2 °C for 0.25 vol% ZnO
nanofluids. Hence, heat transfer coefficient gets increased with
increased loading (volume %) of ZnO nanoparticles in nanofluids.
This enhancement can be explained by following mechanisms
which are in line with the explanation depicted in previous section
[47]: (1) an early shift to turbulent flow from laminar flow takes
place which is caused by the addition of ZnO nanoparticles and this
is responsible for higher heat transfer coefficient in presence of
ZnO nanoparticles, (2) the addition of ZnO nanoparticles in the
fluid causes shear thinning phenomenon in nanofluids and has
Fig. 9. Validity of experimental heat transfer setup using distilled water.
167
Fig. 10. Trends of heat transfer coefficient (h) vs. the axial position at different
Volume % of ZnO in nanofluid (Re = 1896).
higher shear rate at the wall showing better fluid flow performance
resulting in intensification in heat transfer coefficient, (3) reduc-
tion in the drag force and thereby the pressure drop in presence
of ZnO nanoparticles shows improvement in the flow behavior
leading in intensification in heat transfer coefficient, (4) dispersion
of ZnO nanoparticles significantly influences the thermal conduc-
tivity and also changes the flow and thermal fields which are
responsible for enhancement in the heat transfer coefficient and
hence, higher convective heat transfer coefficient was observed
for higher loading (volume %) of ZnO nanoparticles and (5) the
higher heat transfer coefficient for higher loading of ZnO nanopar-
ticles in nanofluid is due to the enhanced thermal conductivity of
the ZnO nanoparticle based nanofluids. The heat transfer coeffi-
cient is represented as k/d (k = thermal conductivity of the ZnO
nanofluid and d = thickness of the thermal boundary layer). Due
to the presence of ZnO nanosized particles in the prepared nano-
fluid, there is an intensification in thermal conductivity (k) and
the decrement in the thickness of boundary layer (d) which ulti-
mately results in the enhancement in the heat transfer coefficient
of ZnO nanofluid. In the presence of ZnO nanoparticles in the nano-
fluid lead to thinning effect of boundary layer which also plays an
important role in augmentation in the heat transfer coefficient.
Further, the increased concentration of ZnO nanosized particles
in nanofluid improves the interaction of the added ZnO nanoparti-
cles due to higher collision in the base fluid and likewise the diffu-
sion and higher relative movement of ZnO nanosized particles
close the surface lead to quicker heat transfer from the surface to
the ZnO nanofluid [47]. This increased concentration of ZnO
nanoparticles in nanofluid has noteworthy influence on resulting
Fig. 11. Trends of heat transfer coefficient (h) vs. the axial position at different
values of Reynolds Number and volume percentage of ZnO in nanofluids.
168 R.N. Radkar et al. / Materials Science for Energy Technologies 2 (2019) 161–170
Fig. 12. Trends of Nusselt Number (Nu) vs. the axial position at different Volume % of ZnO in nanofluid (Re = 1896).
physical properties of ZnO nanofluid like pressure drop, thermal
conductivity, viscosity etc. which consequently affects the heat
transfer coefficient.
Further, the Nusselt number estimated with the use of local
heat transfer coefficient is reported in Fig. 10 at different volume
% of ZnO nanoparticles for Reynolds number equal to 1896. The
estimated Nusselt number for different volume % of ZnO nanosized
particles are depicted in Fig. 11. The Nusselt number estimated for
distilled water at the entry of the test section was 12.7 and
increased to 20.91 for 0.25 vol% of the ZnO nanoparticles in nano-
fluid. This drastic enhancement in the Nusselt number at the entry
of the test section is due to entrance effect. This is similar to what
has been explained earlier. Further, at the exit of the test section,
Nusselt number was found to be increasing from 6.73 to 7.98 as
volume % of the ZnO nanoparticles increased from 0 to 0.25 vol%.
The % improvement in the Nusselt number observed was 18.6%
for 0.25 vol% of ZnO nanoparticles in nanofluid at the exit of the
test section. The possible reasons for this enhancement in Nusselt
number are reported in the previous paragraph.
3.5. Effect of Reynolds number on heat transfer coefficient and Nusselt
number
Fig. 12 shows different trends in local convective heat transfer
coefficient with the axial position at various values of Reynolds
number and various loading of ZnO nanoparticles. The clear trend
of decrease in the heat transfer coefficient with axial distance is
observed which is justified by the entrance effect in the test sec-
tion. For every selected value of volume % of the ZnO nanofluid,
the heat transfer coefficient intensifies with the rise in the Rey-
nolds number of the nanofluid. The heat transfer coefficient mea-
sured at the exit of the test section was observed to be
increasing from 208.88 to 379.35 W/m2.°C with increase in Rey-
nolds number from 1083 to 2167 for 0.05 vol% of ZnO nanoparti-
cles in the nanofluid. In the case of 0.25 vol%, heat transfer
coefficient measured at the exit of the test section was found to
be increasing from 228.44 to 420.90 W/m2.°C for increase in the
Reynolds number from 1083 to 2167. Further, similar trends were
observed for various other volume % of ZnO nanosized particles in
the nanofluid. This is caused by an increase in the turbulence at
higher Reynolds number that ultimately intensifies heat transfer
coefficient. This is also caused by decrement in the thickness of
boundary layer due to formation of eddies at higher Reynolds
number which enhances the heat transfer coefficient. Higher Rey-
nolds number intensifies the chaotic movements of the ZnO nano-
sized particles throughout the nanofluid and this also contribute in
enhancing the heat transfer coefficient and at lesser value of Rey-
nolds number, there may be agglomeration of the ZnO nanosized
particles which may lead to lowering of the heat transfer enhance-
ment of the nanofluid. Conversely, at higher value of Reynolds
number, this agglomeration effect of ZnO nanoparticles in nano-
fluid drastically decreases leading to intensification of mixing
and dispersion of the ZnO nanoparticles, which results in substan-
tial increase in the heat transfer coefficient. Also, another possible
reason for convective heat transfer coefficient enhancement is the
enhanced particle movement caused by the substantial increase in
 R.N. Radkar et al. / Materials Science for Energy Technologies 2 (2019) 161–170
Fig. 13. Trends of Nusselt Number (Nu) vs. the axial position at different values of Reynolds Number and volume percentage of ZnO in nanofluids.
velocity due to increased Reynolds number. This higher velocity is
responsible for speedy movement and collision between the ZnO
nanoparticles resulting in increase in the heat transfer coefficient
[48,50,51].
Fig. 13 shows the trends in the Nusselt number with axial posi-
tion for different Reynolds number and various volume % of ZnO
nanosized particles. It has been observed that the Nusselt number
for a constant diameter flow region increases as the Reynolds num-
ber in increased for each volume % of ZnO nanosized particles in
the nanofluid. At 0.05 vol%, the Nusselt number was observed to
be enhanced from 4.52 to 8.22 for an increased Reynolds number
from 1083 to 2167. Also it increases from 4.95 to 9.12 in the case
of 0.25 vol% of ZnO nanoparticles for an increased Reynolds num-
ber from 1083 to 2167. It is again attributed to the possible
agglomeration effect of ZnO nanoparticles at lower Reynolds num-
ber which decreases the local Nusselt number of the ZnO nano-
fluid. At higher value of Reynolds number, the agglomeration
effect of ZnO nanoparticles in nanofluid considerably decreases
which intensifies the dispersion of the nanoparticles due to proper
mixing leading to drastic enhancement in the Nusselt number.
4. Conclusions
In the present work, experimental investigation of the convec-
tive heat transfer provided by the ZnO nanofluid in helical copper
tube heat exchanger at constant wall temperature was carried out.
Successful sonochemical preparation of ZnO nanoparticles
was accomplished that leads to the formation of particles of size
169
9–15 nm which is analysed from TEM analysis. XRD and UV/Vis
analysis confirms the formation of ZnO nanoparticles by ultra-
sound assisted process. The selected volume % range of ZnO
nanoparticles was from 0.05 to 0.25 with Reynolds number in
the range of 1083 to 2167. Estimation of the thermal conductivity
ratio was accomplished for various volume % of ZnO nanosized par-
ticles and temperature of the nanofluid. The trends shows signifi-
cant enhancement in the thermal conductivity ratio values with
the volume % of ZnO nanoparticle and temperature. The significant
enhancement in the heat transfer coefficient and then in Nusselt
number values was observed with increasing volume % of ZnO
nanoparticles in the nanofluids and also Reynolds number. 18.6%
increase in the Nusselt number was found at 0.5 vol% of ZnO nano-
sized particles in nanofluid. Intensified values of heat transfer coef-
ficient and Nusselt number at higher Reynolds number is caused
due to the reduction in agglomeration of the ZnO nanoparticles
and intensified mixing which is due to the superior dispersion of
the ZnO nanoparticles at higher flow velocities. Thus, enhancement
in the heat transfer characteristics and compatibility of ZnO nano-
fluid accredits it to become a feasible option in heat transfer equip-
ments used in chemical industries.
Acknowledgment
This work was supported by the Science & Engineering Research
Board (SERB), Government of India [Start Up Research Grant
(Young Scientists), Sanction order no. YSS/2014/000889, 2015].
170 R.N. Radkar et al. / Materials Science for Energy Technologies 2 (2019) 161–170

References [29] M. Kahani, S.Z. Heris, S.M. Mousavi, Experimental investigation of TiO2/water
nanofluid laminar forced convective heat transfer through helical coiled tube,
Heat Mass Trans. 50 (2014) 1563–1573.
[1] J.C. Maxwell, A Treatise on Electricity and Magnetism, 2nd., Clarendon Press
[30] B.A. Bhanvase, S.D. Sayankar, A. Kapre, P.J. Fule, S.H. Sonawane, Experimental
Oxford, U.K, 1881.
investigation on intensified convective heat transfer coefficient of water based
[2] S.K. Das, S.U.S. Choi, H.E. Patel, Heat transfer in nanofluids – a review, Heat
PANI nanofluid in vertical helical coiled heat exchanger, Appl. Therm. Eng. 128
Trans. Eng. 27 (2006) 3–19.
(2018) 134–140.
[3] S.U.S. Choi, Enhancing Thermal Conductivity of Fluids with Nanoparticles FED-
[31] P.J. Fule, B.A. Bhanvase, S.H. Sonawane, Experimental investigation of heat
vol. 231/MD-vol. 66, ASME Publications, 1995, pp. 99–105.
transfer enhancement in helical coil heat exchangers using water based CuO
[4] J.A. Eastman, S.U.S. Choi, S. Li, W. Yu, L.J. Thompson, Anomalously increased
nanofluid, Adv. Powder Technol. 28 (2017) 2288–2294.
effective thermal conductivities of ethylene glycolbased nanofluids containing
[32] A.M. Fsadni, J.P.M. Whitty, A.A. Adeniyi, J. Simo, H.L. Brooks, A Review on the
copper nanoparticles, Appl. Phys. Lett. 78 (2001) 718–720.
application of nanofluids in coiled tube heat exchangers, in: M. Jackson, W.
[5] H. Xie, J. Wang, T. Xi, Y. Liu, Thermal conductivity of suspensions containing
Ahmed (Eds.), Micro and Nanomanufacturing, II, Springer, Cham, 2018, pp.
nanosized SiC particles, Int. J. Thermophys. 23 (2002) 571–580.
443–465.
[6] L. Qiang, X. Yimin, Convective heat transfer and flow characteristics of Cu-
[33] M.A. Khairul, R. Saidur, M.M. Rahman, M.A. Alim, A. Hossain, Z. Abdin, Heat
water nanofluid, Sci. China Ser. E 45 (2002) 408–416.
transfer and thermodynamic analyses of a helically coiled heat exchanger
[7] S.M.S. Murshed, K.C. Leong, C. Yang, Enhanced thermal conductivity of TiO2-
using different types of nanofluids, Int. J. Heat Mass Trans. 67 (2013) 398–403.
water based nanofluids, Int. J. Therm. Sci. 44 (2005) 367–373.
[34] H.R. Ghorbani, F.P. Mehr, S. Pazoki, B.M. Rehmani, Synthesis of ZnO
[8] M.S. Liu, C.C. Lin, I.T. Huang, C.C. Wang, Enhancement of thermal conductivity
nanoparticles by precipitation method, Oriental J. Chem. 13 (2015) 1219–
with CuO for nanofluids, Chem. Eng. Technol. 29 (2006) 72–77.
1221.
[9] L.S. Sundar, M.K. Singh, A.C.M. Sousa, Investigation of thermal conductivity and
[35] B. Bethi, S.H. Sonawane, G.S. Rohit, C.R. Holkar, D.V. Pinjari, B.A. Bhanvase, A.B.
viscosity of Fe3O4 nanofluid for heat transfer applications, Int. Commun. Heat
Pandit, Investigation of TiO2 photocatalyst performance for decolourization in
Mass 44 (2013) 7–14.
the presence of Hydrodynamic cavitation as hybrid AOP, Ultrason. Sonochem.
[10] C. Pang, J.Y. Jung, J.W. Lee, Y.T. Kang, Thermal conductivity measurement of
28 (2016) 150–160.
methanol-based nanofluids with Al2O3 and SiO2 nanoparticles, Int. J. Heat
[36] B. Bethi, S.H. Sonawane, I. Potoroko, B.A. Bhanvase, S.S. Sonawane, Novel
Mass Trans. 55 (2012) 5597–5602.
hybrid system based on hydrodynamic cavitation for treatment of dye waste
[11] M. Naraki, S.M. Peyghambarzadeh, S.H. Hashemabadi, Y. Vermahmoudi,
water: a first report on bench scale study, J. Environ. Chem. Eng. 5 (2017)
Parametric study of overall heat transfer coefficient of CuO/water nanofluids
1874–1884.
in a car radiator, Int. J. Therm. Sci. 66 (2013) 82–90.
[37] M. Suresh Kumar, S.H. Sonawane, B.A. Bhanvase, B. Bethi, Treatment of ternary
[12] M.M. Elias, I.M. Mahbubul, R. Saidur, M.R. Sohel, I.M. Shahrul, S.S.
dye wastewater by hydrodynamic cavitation combined with other advanced
Khaleduzzaman, S. Sadeghipour, Experimental investigation on the thermo-
oxidation processes (AOP’s), J. Water Process Eng. 23 (2018) 250–256.
physical properties of Al2O3 nanoparticles suspended in car radiator coolant,
[38] M. Azarang, Ahmad Shuhaimi, Ramin Yousefi, A. Moradi Golsheikh, M.
Int. Commun. Heat Mass 54 (2014) 48–53.
Sookhakian, Synthesis and characterization of ZnO NPs/reduced graphene
[13] K. Goudarzi, H. Jamali, Heat transfer enhancement of Al2O3-EG nanofluid in a
oxide nanocomposite prepared in gelatin medium as highly efficient photo-
car radiator with wire coil inserts, Appl. Therm. Eng. 118 (2017) 510–517.
degradation of MB, Ceram. Int. 40 (2014) 10217–10221.
[14] A. Menbari, A.A. Alemrajabi, A. Rezaei, Heat transfer analysis and the effect of
[39] B.A. Bhanvase, D.V. Pinjari, P.R. Gogate, S.H. Sonawane, A.B. Pandit, Process
CuO/Water nanofluid on direct absorption concentrating solar collector, Appl.
intensification of encapsulation of functionalized CaCO3 nanoparticles using
Therm. Eng. 104 (2016) 176–183.
ultrasound assisted emulsion polymerization, Chem. Eng. Process. 50 (2011)
[15] K. Khanafer, K. Vafai, A review on the applications of nanofluids in solar energy
1160–1168.
field, Renew. Energ. 123 (2018) 398–406.
[40] S.E. Karekar, B.A. Bhanvase, S.H. Sonawane, M.P. Deosarkar, D.V. Pinjari, A.B.
[16] M.R. Sohel, S.S. Khaleduzzaman, R. Saidur, A. Hepbasli, M.F.M. Sabri, I.M.
Pandit, Synthesis of zinc molybdate and zinc phosphomolybdate
Mahbubul, An experimental investigation of heat transfer enhancement of a
nanopigments by an ultrasound assisted route: advantage over conventional
minichannel heat sink using Al2O3–H2O nanofluid, Int. J. Heat Mass Trans. 74
method, Chem. Eng. Process. 87 (2015) 51–59.
(2014) 164–172.
[41] S. Wang, Y. Li, H. Zhang, Y. Lin, Z. Li, W. Wang, Q. Wu, Y. Qian, H. Hong, C. Zhi,
[17] H.M. Ali, H. Ali, H. Liaquat, H.T.B. Maqsood, M.A. Nadir, Experimental
Enhancement of thermal conductivity in water-based nanofluids employing
investigation of convective heat transfer augmentation for car radiator using
TiO2/reduced graphene oxide composites, J. Mater. Sci. 51 (2016) 10104–10115.
ZnO-water nanofluids, Energy 84 (2015) 317–324.
[42] T.T. Baby, S. Ramaprabhu, Synthesis and nanofluid application of silver
[18] L. Zhang, Y. Jiang, Y. Ding, M. Povey, D. York, Investigation into the
nanoparticles decorated graphene, J. Mater. Chem. 21 (2011) (2011) 9702–
antibacterial behaviour of suspensions of ZnO nanoparticles (ZnO
9709.
nanofluids), J. Nanopar. Res. 9 (2007) 479–489.
[43] T.T. Baby, R. Sundara, Synthesis and transport properties of metal oxide
[19] L. Zhang, Y. Ding, M. Povey, D. York, ZnO nanofluids – a potential antibacterial
decorated graphene dispersed nanofluids, J. Phys. Chem. C 115 (2011) (2011)
agent, Prog. Nat. Sci. 18 (2008) 939–944.
8527–8533.
[20] P. Khatak, R. Jakhar, M. Kumar, Enhancement in cooling of electronic
[44] T.T. Baby, S. Ramaprabhu, Investigation of thermal and electrical conductivity
components by nanofluids, J. Inst. Eng. India Ser. C 96 (2015) 245–251.
of graphene based nanofluids, J. Appl. Phys. 108 (2010) 124308.
[21] G.J. Lee, C.K. Kim, M.K. Lee, C.K. Rhee, S. Kim, C. Kim, Thermal conductivity
[45] H. Xie, M. Fujii, X. Zhang, Effect of interfacial nanolayer on the effective
enhancement of ZnO nanofluid using a one-step physical method,
thermal conductivity of nanoparticle fluid mixture, Int. J. Heat Mass Trans. 48
Thermochim. Acta 542 (2012) 24–27.
(2005) 2926–2932.
[22] W. Yu, H. Xie, L. Chen, Y. Li, Investigation of thermal conductivity and viscosity
[46] R.K. Shah, Thermal Entry Length Solutions for the Circular Tube and Parallel
of ethylene glycol based ZnO nanofluid, Thermochim. Acta 491 (2009) 92–96.
Plates, Proceedings of the 3rd National Heat Mass Transfer Conference, Indian
[23] A. Mourgues, V. Hourtane, T. Muller, M. Caron-Charles, Boiling behaviors and
Institute of Technology, Bombay, 1975.
critical heat flux on a horizontal and vertical plate in saturated pool boiling
[47] B.A. Bhanvase, M.R. Sarode, L.A. Putterwar, K.A. Abdullah, M.P. Deosarkar, S.H.
with and without ZnO nanofluid, Int. J. Heat Mass Trans. 57 (2013) 595–607.
Sonawane, Intensification of convective heat transfer in water/ethylene glycol
[24] J. Jeong, C. Li, Y. Kwon, J. Lee, S.H. Kim, R. Yun, Particle shape effect on the
based nanofluids containing TiO2 nanoparticles, Chem. Eng. Process. 82 (2014)
viscosity and thermal conductivity of ZnO nanofluids, Int. J. Refrigeration 36
123–131.
(2013) 2233–2241.
[48] P. Gurav, S. Naik, B.A. Bhanvase, D.V. Pinjari, S.H. Sonawane, M. Ashokkumar,
[25] K.S. Suganthi, V.L. Vinodhan, K.S. Rajan, Heat transfer performance and
Heat transfer intensification using polyaniline based nanofluids: preparation
transport properties of ZnO–ethylene glycol and ZnO–ethylene glycol–water
and application, Chem. Eng. Process. 95 (2015) 195–201.
nanofluid coolants, Appl. Energy 135 (2014) 548–559.
[49] B.A. Bhanvase, S.D. Kamath, U.P. Patil, H.A. Patil, A.B. Pandit, S.H. Sonawane,
[26] K.S. Suganthi, K.S. Rajan, Improved transient heat transfer performance of
Intensification of heat transfer using PANI nanoparticles and PANI-CuO
ZnO–propylene glycol nanofluids for energy management, Energy Convers.
nanocomposite based nanofluids, Chem. Eng. Process. 104 (2016) 172–180.
Manage. 96 (2015) 115–123.
[50] R. Turcu, D. Bica, L. Vekas, N. Aldea, D. Macovei, A. Nan, O. Pana, O. Marinica, R.
[27] A.E. Bergles, Recent development in convective heat transfer augmentation,
Grecu, C. Pop, Synthesis and characterization of nanostructured polypyrrole-
Appl. Mech. Rev. 26 (1973) 675–682.
magnetic particles hybrid material, Romanian Rep. Phys. 58 (2006) 359–367.
[28] P.C. Mukesh Kumar, J. Kumar, S. Suresh, Experimental investigation on
[51] Y. Siah, M. Sivakumar, Impact of process parameters in the generation of novel
convective heat transfer and friction factor in a helically coiled tube with
aspirin nanoemulsions-comparative studies between ultrasound cavitation
Al2O3/water nanofluid, J. Mech. Sci. Technol. 27 (2013) 239–245.
and microfluidiser, Ultrason. Sonochem. 20 (2013) 485–497.