Influence of pH on Nanofluids' Viscosity and Thermal Conductivity

Aiming at the dispersion stability of nanoparticles regarded as the guide of heat transfer enhancement, we investigate the viscosity and the thermal conductivity of Cu and Al₂O₃ nanoparticles in water under different pH values. The results show that there exists an optimal pH value for the lowest viscosity and the highest thermal conductivity, and that at the optimal pH value the nanofluids containing a small amount of nanoparticles have noticeably higher thermal conductivity than that of the base fluid without nanoparticles. For the two nanofluids the enhancements of thermal conductivity are observed up to 13% (Al₂O₃-water) or 15% (Cu-water) at 0.4wt%, respectively. Therefore, adjusting the pH values is suggested to improve the stability and the thermal conductivity for practical applications of nanofluid.