Literature Review

Research Question
The research question expected to be answered by this thesis is as follows:

Is volumetric absorption of light by nanoparticles more effective than selective absorption of light in an
evacuated tube subject to a linear fresnel concentrator?

This question will be answered through experimental testing outlined in the materials and
methods section as well as comparison to the modelled case.
The Research in Context
There has been an explosive increase in the volume of nanofluid research and publications since
the fields conception in 1995 with its inaugural publication by Choi, with an increasing trend of
32% per year from 2007 to 2011 (Taylor, et al., 2013).

Figure 1 Nanofluid publications by year (Taylor et.al 2013)
Interests in the research area for nanofluids in solar thermal applications have culminated due to
their attractive thermal properties, including but not limited to improved thermal conductivity,
specific heat, viscosity and convective heat transfer coefficient (Taylor, et al., 2013).

Within the broad tapestry of nanofluid papers and publications, there are notable holes in the
chosen research field of nanofluids applications in evacuated tubes for low concentration ratios
(C = 10). This research will thus have practical and scholarly significance in alleviating this
knowledge gap. This literature review will provide conceptual linkages between research
conducted within the chosen field of study and also relevant associated fields to provide a
comprehensive overview of the research in context.

Figure 2 Literature review in context
Figure 2 illustrates the fields of research to be critically examined in order to determine what is
known about the problem and previous methods of attempting to solve it in order to form a
comprehensive literature review.

Other research fields (including Fresnel concentrator studies) were deemed to be out of the scope
of this study as the research is primarily interested in the potential improvement derived from
volumetric absorption in contrast to selective absorption. The concentrator type is insignificant as
the only criteria required to be satisfied is a concentration ratio of ~10+ so that there are
measurable temperature differences and thus measurement error is reduced.
Outline of Existing Relevant Literature
At the core of the literature examined in this review is the use of nanofluids for volumetric
absorption in solar thermal heat transfer applications, which utilise a variety of particle types in
conjunction with the working fluid (typically water). These studies are especially useful in
examining how heat and optical transfer are adjusted for in the presence of nanoparticles.
Publication Content Author
Plasma Functionalisation Of Carbon
Nanotubes
Nanofluids
(Hordy, et al.,
2013)
High Temperature And Long-Term Stability
Of Carbon Nanotube
Nanofluids
(Hordy, et al.,
2014)
Small Particles, Big Impacts: A Review Of The
Diverse Applications Of Nanofluids
Nanofluids
(Taylor, et al.,
2013)
Trends And Opportunities In Direct-
Absorption Solar Thermal Collectors
Heat Transfer, Numerical
Methods
(Phelan, et al.,
2013)
Solar Energy Harvesting Using Nanofluids-
Based
Concentrating Solar Collector
Nanofluids, Heat Transfer
And Calculations
(Khullar, et al.,
2013)
Applicability Of Nanofluids In High Flux
Solar Collectors
Calculations For Heat
Transfer In High Flux Power
Tower
(Taylor, et al.,
2011)
Predicted Efficiency Of A Low-Temperature
Nanofluid-Based Direct Absorption Solar
Collector
2d Modelling Of
Heat/Optical Transfer
(Tyagi, et al.,
2009)
Optimization Of Nanofluid Volumetric
Receivers For Solar Thermal Energy
Conversion
High Flux 1d Nanofluid
Temperature Analysis
(Lenert & Wang,
2011)
Nanofluid-Based Direct Absorption Solar
Collector
Volumetric Vs Surface And
Nanoparticle Concentration
(Otanicar, et al.,
2010)
The Efficiency Enhancement On The Direct
Flow Evacuated Tube Solar Collector Using
Water-Based Titanium Oxide Nanofluids
Nanofluids And Heat
Transfer In Evacuated Tube
(Mahendran, et
al., 2013)
Publication Content Author
Thermal Performance Of An Open
Thermosyphon Using Nanofluids For High-
Temperature Evacuated Tubular Solar
Collectors Part 1: Indoor Experiment
Air Collector With Varying
Nanofluid Concentration
And Parabolic Concentrator
(Lu, et al., 2010)
Numerical Simulation Of Steady Natural
Convection Heat Transfer In A 3-Dimensional
Single-Ended Tube Subjected To A Nanofluid
Heat Transfer Inside A 3d
Evacuated Tube/Numerical
Modelling
(Shahi, et al.,
2010)
Thermal Performance Of An Open
Thermosyphon Using Nanofluid For
Evacuated Tubular High Temperature Air
Solar Collector
Air Collector With Varying
Nanofluid Concentration
And Parabolic Concentrator
(Liu, et al., 2013)
Laminar Natural Convective Heat Transfer in
the Enclosed Evacuated Collector Tube with
East-West Symmetric Heat Input
Heat Transfer Inside 3D
Open Ended Evacuated
Tube/Numerical Modelling
(Zhang & Ge,
1996)
Steady Natural Convection in a Tilted Long
Cylindrical Envelope with Lateral Adiabatic
Surface, Part 1: Theoretical Modeling and
Numerical Treatments
Heat Transfer Inside 3D
Open Ended Evacuated
Tube/Numerical Modelling
(He, et al., 2003)
Steady Natural Convection in a Tilted Long
Cylindrical Envelope with Lateral Adiabatic
Surface, Part 2: Heat Transfer Rate, Flow
Patterns and Temperature Distributions
Heat Transfer Inside 3D
Open Ended Evacuated
Tube/Numerical Modelling
(He, et al., 2003)


Nanofluid Composition, Properties and Formulation
At the core of this thesis is the utilisation of stable nanofluids for their heat transfer properties. A
thorough investigation of the methods formation of stable nanofluids is outside the scope of this
thesis, however an overview will be provided. Nanoparticles for solar applications include, but
are not limited to: gold, silver, copper, aluminium, graphite, carbon and alloys of these elements
(Taylor, et al., 2013). These particles have a size of magnitude 10
-9
m and are held in suspension
within a working fluid to form a nanofluid.

Nanofluids are deemed attractive for solar applications due to their enhanced heat transfer
characteristics (as outlined in the previous section) and tunable optical properties (Taylor, et al.,
2013). As nanoparticles have inherently high surface to volume ratios, they can achieve extremely
high absorption efficiencies at extremely low concentrations (mg/L) (Hordy, et al., 2014).

For an arbitrary fluid with particles in suspension, it is expected for the suspended particles to
eventually settle to the bottom of the container. The same would be expected for nanofluids,
however suspension is prevented for particles of size 10
-9
m 5 x 10
-7
m (Sjgren, 2014), due to the
presence of Brownian motion (Taylor, et al., 2013). Brownian motion refers to the schotastic
process of kinetic theory of motion in liquids and gases, in which thermal agitation of particles
results in perpetual erratic movement (Kelly & Holden, 2005). Brownian motion can however be
overcome with the undesirable agglomeration of nanoparticles, which can clog pumps and valves,
foul transparent tubing and eventually settle out of solution (Otanicar, et al., 2010). Methods of
synthesis of nanofluids are thus aimed at preventing agglomeration and enhancing stability
characteristics of the fluid.

For this thesis, the particles to be used in suspension are carbon nanotubes due to their exceptional
properties, stability under long term, high temperature conditions in water based nanofluids
(Hordy, et al., 2014). A variety of approaches have been attempted in order to create a stable
carbon nanotube nanofluid, including the use of surfactants, surface treatments, intense
mechanical mixing and surface functionalization; intended to overcome issues of agglomeration
and dispersion, but having only partial success (Hordy, et al., 2013). However a quantitative study
into the long term stability of carbon nanotube based nanofluids under thermal and optical stress
presented results of stability in excess of 8 months through the synthesis technique of plasma
functionalization (Hordy, et al., 2014).

It is also important to note that the use of nanofluids in solar thermal applications is subject to
several conditions. Firstly, in turbulent flows the enhanced heat transfer characteristics of
nanofluids are lost to the fluid regime. Secondly, the volume fraction of nanoparticles suspended
in the fluid must be very tightly controlled in order to control both the viscosity of the fluid and
the absorption and scattering characteristics (Taylor, et al., 2013). If the volume fraction of
nanoparticles residing in the base fluid is low, (fv =~ 0.1%) (Tyagi, et al., 2009) the nanofluid will
approximate the optical properties of the base fluid and not receive enhanced solar absorption
characteristics. On the contrary, if the volume fraction is too high, (fv > 2%) (Tyagi, et al., 2009) the
solar absorption can reach an asymptotic value and not be enhanced further than the absorption
value at a lower concentration. In some cases, high volume fractions can be detrimental to the
collectors operation as sunlight is absorbed in a thin layer at the surface due to the abundance of
nanoparticles and thus dissipate will large amounts of energy via convection and radiation
(Khullar, et al., 2013) and experience decreased photon penetration depth (Lenert & Wang, 2011).

Nanofluids in Non-Evacuated Tube Solar Thermal Applications
There exists a plethora of literature relating to the use of nanofluids in non-evacuated tube solar
thermal applications, many utilising water as a working fluid, but others employing therminol
VP-1 due to their UV resistant properties (Phelan, et al., 2013). There exist many studies that have
previously analysed low temperature operation (Tyagi, et al., 2009), (Otanicar, et al., 2010), etc.
however many of these studies examine the effects of absorption in non-cylindrical mediums and
their models are represented by rectangular channels.

In addition, due to the rectangular nature of these absorption devices, the optical characteristics
differ from the current experiment, due to the normality of incoming radiation and the effect that
has on absorption and scattering. Other relevant, but not directly applicable results include those
for high flux applications (Taylor, et al., 2011), as the heat transfer characteristics in the fluid are
different (notably radiative transfer will dominate as it is proportional to T
4
).
Previous Comparative Studies of Selective Absorbers Vs Volumetric Absorption
Lenert and Wang (2011) investigated the use of nanofluids over selective absorbers for high
temperature and high flux applications in which the primary goal of utilisation of the nanofluid
was to alleviate the temperature difference between the selective absorber and the temperature of
the fluid.

The large surface area to volume ratio of the nanoparticles results in instant heat transfer to the
bulk fluid as opposed to the absorption of incident light on the surface and subsequent heat
transfer to the fluid via conduction and convection in the selective absorber case (Lenert & Wang,
2011). This phenomenon thus alleviates any temperature differences between the absorber and
the fluid.

In their study, they investigated the temperature relationship of volumetric receivers and selective
absorbers compared to the fluid temperature. Figure 3 illustrates that for a fluid temperature of
1000K, the temperature of the volumetric receiver is TVR = 750K and for the selective surface,
TSS = 1280K. This represents a decrease in emissive losses by 1 W/m
2
through the usage of a
nanofluid, which is substantial, but this difference is only present as the fluid temperature
Tf =~1000K+.

Thus, the results of the study are not directly applicable in solving the problem as it is firstly
assumed that the radiation is normal for all incidence (which is not present for this experiment)
and secondly, the temperatures are much greater than for our application (T = 1000K compared to
T = 300K). This paper however, provides an insight into the prospect of nanofluid usage for low
temperature application due to their instant heat transfer properties to the bulk fluid.

Figure 3 Comparison of the emissive loss at a given temperature (Lenert & Wang, 2011)
Phenomena and Equations
Despite the incompatibility of model results and research methodology employed in non-
evacuated tube, mid-high temperature studies, there are several phenomena and governing
equations that are consistently present throughout the various research publications.
Rayleigh Scattering
Rayleigh scattering is the frequency (wavelength) dependent scattering phenomenon present
when the sizes of receptive particles are smaller than the wavelength of the incident light. Due to
the proportionality of scattering to the inverse of wavelength to the power of 4, high frequency
light is scattered much more effectively than low frequency light (Fitzpatrick, 2006). Due to the
miniscule nature of the particles in nanofluids, scattering will always occur within the Rayleigh
regime as nanoparticles (< 100 nm) are smaller than the wavelength of the light in the visible
spectrum (400 - 700 nm) (Netting, 2014).

The scattering component of the extinction coefficient in the Rayleigh regime is proportional to
this equation (Tyagi, et al., 2009) for all nanofluid studies examined
in the literature.
Alteration of Optical and Physical Properties of the Nanofluid
The high surface area to volume ratio as previously mentioned, results in immediate heat transfer
of thermal energy to the bulk fluid for volumetric absorption via nanoparticles. It is thus assumed
in the literature that the fluid and particles are assumed to be temperature equivalent and thus the
nanofluid is modelled as a single phase isotropic fluid (Lenert & Wang, 2011).

In some studies, it is assumed that the physical properties of the nanofluid remain unchanged to
that of the bulk fluid (Lenert & Wang, 2011) (due to the low percentage particle concentration), but
in others that the parallel mixture rule is used to calculate density and specific heat of the resulting
nanofluid (Khullar, et al., 2013).

It is additionally assumed that the nanofluid physical properties are independent of temperature
(not strictly correct for high temperature application, due to changes in density and specific heat,
but a reasonable assumption for low temperature applications) (Tyagi, et al., 2009).

For the optical properties of nanofluids, scattering phenomena has previously been discussed,
however there is an additional aspect of reflectivity at the top and bottom layer of the absorbing
fluid, modelled using a combination of the Maxwell Garnett effective medium theory and the
Fresnel equation (Taylor, et al., 2011) resulting in a reflectivity distribution as shown in Figure 5.

An additional optical property includes the coefficient for absorption which is determined via a
relatively complex relation relating to the interaction between the complex index of refraction and
the nanoparticle size (Tyagi, et al., 2009).

Figure 4 Absorption Coefficient (Tyagi, et al., 2009)


Figure 5 Reflectivity with Wavelength (Taylor, et al., 2011)
Energy and Radiative Transport Equations
All studies in the literature relating to direct absorption solar collectors use a form of the energy
equation and the radiative transport equation.

Figure 6 Energy Equation in 3 Dimensions (Phelan, et al., 2013)

Figure 7 Radiative Transport Equation for Arbitrary Direction S (Phelan, et al., 2013)
The energy equation relates the transfer of thermal energy via convection, conduction and
radiation respectively for the nominated x, y, z planes.

The radiative transport equation (excluding emission for low temperature applications (Tyagi, et
al., 2009)) represents the changes in radiation intensity due to absorption, emission and scattering
as it propagates through the fluid (Phelan, et al., 2013).

Black Body Equation
The black body equation for TSOLAR depicts the intensity of incident light for a given wavelength. It
is used in conjunction with the radiative transport equation and the energy equation to form a
numerical solution.

Figure 8 Black Body Equation (Tyagi, et al., 2009)

Mathematical Resolution of Heat Transfer Equations
Due to the absence of an exact solution for the above equations, there are typically several
methods of numerical methods employed to eventuate to a converging solution (Phelan, et al.,
2013). These can include Monte Carlo technique, differential-discrete-ordinate method (though
very infrequent) and finite difference analysis (Lenert & Wang, 2011), (Tyagi, et al., 2009), (Taylor,
et al., 2011).

The finite difference technique used in involves discretising the collector into a 2D mesh of nodes
subject to a particular band of wavelengths and solved utilising the forward difference implicit
method, taking into consideration boundary conditions (Tyagi, et al., 2009).

We can see how this analysis is suitable for a rectangular vessel or channel but will be difficult to
appropriate for a cylindrical 3D mesh, such as an evacuated tube. The modelling solution
employed for this thesis will employ a similar technique, however with a different set of
assumptions and several approximations to satisfy certain optical conditions (normality and
uniform irradiance) and physical conditions (3D cylindrical container in contrast to 2D rectangle).

Nanofluids in Evacuated Tube Solar Thermal Applications
There are very few isolated open-ended evacuated tube nanofluid studies in existence to date, as
most evacuated tube studies are focused on the single end thermosiphon configuration (Liu, et al.,
2013), (Lu, et al., 2010). There are similarly low quantities of studies modelling the steady natural
heat transfer within an evacuated tube; most make approximations based on uniform wall
temperature or uniform heat input conditions (Shahi, et al., 2010).

Of the modelling studies, Zhang & Ge (1996) is the most informative, with an in depth analysis of
the equations governing an open ended evacuated tube, including the continuity equation, energy
equation, boundary conditions, nusselt number and other related phenomena including
stratification and parametric effects.

While the results of this paper are within the scope of the thesis, it will be difficult to appropriate
these results to the modelling analysis for this experiment, due to the complexity of the analysis
and computational infrastructure required to compute the results.

Mahendran, et al. (2013) provides the most complete (and only) analysis on an open-ended
evacuated tube with a working nanofluid. It features a standalone experimental analysis (with no
concentration of sunlight), however comparison to the selective absorber case or presence of
computational modelling of the experiment is notably absent.

It found that for quasi-steady state operation, a water based TiO2 nanofluid increases the efficiency
of the evacuated tube collector by 42.5% compared to water as the working fluid. This is a
promising result that is likely to be reproduced in this thesis.

Bibliography
Fitzpatrick, R., 2006. Rayleigh Scattering. [Online]
Available at: http://farside.ph.utexas.edu/teaching/em/lectures/node97.html
[Accessed 16 October 2014].
He, Y., Tao, W., Zhao, T. & Chen, Z., 2003. Steady Natural Convection in a Tilted Long Cylindrical
Envelope with Lateral Adiabatic Surface, Part 1: Theoretical Modeling and Numerical Treatments.
Numerical Heat Transfer, Part A: Applications: An International Journal of Computation and
Methodology.
He, Y., Tao, W., Zhao, T. & Chen, Z., 2003. Steady Natural Convection in a Tilted Long Cylindrical
Envelope with Lateral Adiabatic Surface, Part 2: Heat Transfer Rate, Flow Patterns and
Temperature Distributions. Numerical Heat Transfer, Part A: Applications: An International Journal of
Computation and Methodology.
Hordy, N., Coulombe, S. & Meunier, J., 2013. Plasma Functionalization of Carbon Nanotubes for
the Synthesis of Stable Aqueous Nanofluids and Poly(vinyl alcohol) Nanocomposites. Plasma
Processes and Polymers.
Hordy, N., Rabilloud, D., Meunier, J. & Coulombe, S., 2014. High temperature and long-term
stability of carbon nanotube. Solar Energy.
Kelly, K. & Holden, J., 2005. Brownian Motion. [Online]
Available at: http://cnx.org/contents/f59b5e16-0645-4001-992e-042dbc64edfe@3/Brownian_Motion
[Accessed 16 October 2014].
Khullar, V. et al., 2013. Solar Energy Harvesting Using Nanofluids-Based Concentrating Solar
Collector. Nanotechnology in Engineering and Medicine.
Lenert, A. & Wang, E., 2011. Optimization of nanofluid volumetric receivers for solar thermal
energy conversion. Journal of Solar Energy.
Liu, Z. et al., 2013. Thermal performance of an open thermosyphon using nanofluid for evacuated
tubular high temperature air solar collector. Journal of Energy Conversion and Management.
Lu, L., Liu, Z. & Xiao, H., 2010. Thermal performance of an open thermosyphon using nanofluids
for high-temperature evacuated tubular solar collectors Part 1: Indoor experiment. Journal of Solar
Energy.
Mahendran, M., Ali, T., Shahrani, A. & Bakar, R., 2013. The Efficiency Enhancement on the Direct
Flow Evacuated Tube Solar Collector Using Water-Based Titanium Oxide Nanofluids. Applied
Mechanics and Materials.
Netting, R., 2014. Visible Light. [Online]
Available at: http://missionscience.nasa.gov/ems/09_visiblelight.html
[Accessed 16 October 2014].
Otanicar, T. et al., 2010. Nanofluid-based direct absorption solar collector. Journal of Renewable and
Sustainable Energy.
Phelan, P., Otanicar, T., Taylor, R. & Tyagi, H., 2013. Trends and Opportunities in Direct-
Absorption Solar Thermal Collectors. Thermal Science and Engineering Applications.
Shahi, M., Mahmoudi, A. & Talebi, F., 2010. Numerical simulation of steady natural convection
heat transfer in a 3-dimensional single-ended tube subjected to a nanofluid. International
Communications in Heat and Mass Transfer.
Sjgren, L., 2014. Lecture Notes: Schochastic Processes. [Online]
Available at: http://physics.gu.se/~frtbm/joomla/media/mydocs/LennartSjogren/kap6.pdf
[Accessed 15 October 2014].
Taylor, R. et al., 2013. Small particles, big impacts: A review of the diverse applications. Journal of
Applied Physics.
Taylor, R. et al., 2011. Applicability of nanofluids in high flux solar collectors. Renewable and
Sustainable Energy.
Tyagi, H., Phelan, P. & Prasher, R., 2009. Predicted efficiency of a low-temperature nanofluid-
based direct absorption solar collector. Journal of Solar Energy Engineering.
Zhang, H. & Ge, X., 1996. Laminar Natural Convective Heat Transfer in the Enclosed Evacuated
Collector Tube with East-West Symmetric Heat Input. Journal of Thermal Science.