Investigation On Flow And Energy Transport Of Nanofluids By The Lattice Boltzmann Method

This paper applies the Lattice Boltzmann method to simulate flow and energy transport of nanofluids.The Lattice Boltzmann method is a rising method of numerical simulation. It comes from the discrete movement theory and has been applied to simulate fluid flow and heat transfer.A Two-Dimensional multicomponent Lattice Boltzmann model is developed and its accuracy is proved through theoretical deduction and numerical simulation. Boundary condition and stabilization of the Lattice Boltzmann method are also discussed.Some main characteristics of the nanofluids are described, nanofluids are colloidal suspensions. According to the theory of colloid, the dynamics and thermodynamics of nanofluids are introduced. Act on the relevant forces including Brownian force, dispersion force arising from the interaction potential, viscous forces and gravitation forces, nanoparticles would flocculate. The Brownian motion of nanofluids improves the suspension and distribution of nanoparticles, which will benefit energy transport process inside the nanofluids.A Lattice Boltzmann model for the simulation of nanofluids is developed on the basis of forces on nanoparticles and fluid. The numeric method is applied to simulate the flow behavier of nanofluids and calculate the transport coefficient of nanofluids. The results using this model agree well with the experiment data.