Steady Finite-Amplitude Rayleigh–Bénard Convection of Ethylene Glycol–copper Nanoliquid in a High-Porosity Medium made of 30% Glass Fiber-Reinforced Polycarbonate

Abstract

In the paper, we make linear and nonlinear stability analyses of Rayleigh–Bénard convection in a Newtonian nanoliquid-saturated high-porosity medium. Single-phase model is used for nanoliquids, and values of thermophysical quantities concerning ethylene glycol–copper nanoliquid-saturated porous medium are calculated using mixture theory or phenomenological relations. The study is carried out for free-free, rigid-rigid and rigid-free isothermal boundaries. Boundary effects on onset of convection are shown to conform to classical predictions. The addition of copper nanoparticles to ethylene glycol is shown to lead to advanced onset of convection in the porous medium and thereby to a substantial increase in heat transport. Theoretical explanation is provided for the enhanced heat transfer situation in the medium. With suitable scaling in quantities, the result concerning heat transfer in ethylene glycol–copper nanoliquid-saturated porous medium is shown to be obtainable from those of ethylene glycol-saturated porous medium without copper nanoparticles. Nanoparticles serve the purpose of cooling and porous matrix retains the heat, thereby meaning that residence time of heat in the system can be regulated by using nanoparticles and porous matrix