Abstract

An experimental investigation on the thermal efficiency and thermal resistance with respect to the inclined angle using heat pipe was carried out. The working fluids used for this are Al2O3 nanofluid and deionized water. The performance of heat pipe in terms of overall heat transfer coefficient and thermal resistance is quantified by varying the volume of working fluid and the performance parameters are contemplated. For this purpose Al2O3 nanoparticles with a density of 9.8 g/cm3 and a volume concentration of 1% are used as the working fluid in experimental heat pipe. The performance of heat pipe was evaluated by conducting experiments with different thermal loads and different angle of inclinations. Thermocouples are used to record the temperature distribution across the experiment. Volume of nanoparticles in the base fluid and the consequence of filling ratio on the thermal resistance of the nanofluids are investigated. The results provide evidence that the suspension of Al2O3 nanoparticles in the base fluid increases the thermal efficiency of heat pipe and can be used in practical heat exchange applications.