Thermo-physical and stability properties of raw and functionalization of graphene nanoplatelets-based aqueous nanofluids

This research aimed to evaluate the thermal viscosity, stability, conductivity and density of coolants including PEG-functionalized graphene nanoplatelets (GNPs) and gum Arabic (GA)-treated GNPs as a base fluid at various temperatures and concentrations. The present study explores the impacts of GNPs functionalized with poly ethylene glycol (PEG) on the colloidal stability and thermophysical properties of water-based PEG-functionalized GNPs suspensions as a new generation of heat transfer fluids. To this end, PEG-functionalized GNPs as a covalent sample and GA-treated GNPs were synthesized and their colloidal stabilities were traced via UV–vis spectrometry. After functionalized, colloidal stability results indicate less sedimentation for covalent samples (less than 10%) that that of noncovalent one (almost 20%) after a 15-day period. In addition, all the thermophysical properties e.g. thermal conductivity, density and viscosity were measured experimentally. Further, it has shown that by loading PEG-functionalized GNPs in the water, the increasing rate of the density and viscosity is not significant, while water-based GA-treated GNPs nanofluids showed higher rates of increase. Interestingly, the water-based PEG-functionalized GNP nanofluids at very low concentration significantly increase the thermal conductivity in comparison with that of non-covalent nanofluid at the same concentration and temperature and defiantly water.