Thermal Conductivity of Ethanol/MIL-101(Cr) Nanofluid Combining Molecular Dynamics and Experiments

The incorporation of MOFs can potentially enhance the
thermodynamic
properties of the base fluid, thereby improving the efficiency of
thermodynamics cycles. The thermal conductivity (λ) is an important
thermophysical property of working fluid; however, the thermal conductivity
mechanism of metal–organic heat carrier nanofluids (MOHCs)
remains unclear. Here, λ of MIL-101(Cr)/ethanol nanofluids is
investigated through experiments and molecular dynamic simulation.
The experimental results demonstrate that the addition of MIL-101(Cr)
improves the λ of the base fluid. Also, the λ of MOHCs
was calculated using the equilibrium molecular dynamics method. It
was found the interfacial adsorption nanolayers play a key role during
the heat transfer. The tightly packed ethanol molecules act as heat
pathways facilitating heat transfer to MIL-101(Cr) particles. Moreover,
the addition of MIL-101(Cr) enhances the heat transport of low-frequency
diffusive vibrational modes in the range of 0–20 THz within
the system.