A comprehensive survey on utilization of hybrid nanofluid in plate heat exchanger with various number of plates

Purpose Using suspended nanoparticles in the base fluid is known as one of the most efficient ways for heat transfer augmentation and improving the thermal efficiency of various heat exchangers. Different types of nanofluids are available and used in different applications. The main purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of using hybrid nanofluid and number of plates on the performance of plate heat exchanger. In this study, TiO 2 /water single nanofluid and TiO 2 -Al 2 O 3 /water hybrid nanofluid with 1% particle weight ratio have been used to prepare hybrid nanofluid to use in plate type heat exchangers with three various number of plates including 8, 12 and 16. Design/methodology/approach The experiments have been conducted with the aim of examining the impact of plates number and used nanofluids on heat transfer enhancement. The performance tests have been done at 40°C, 45°C, 50°C and 55°C set outlet temperatures and in five various Reynolds numbers between 1,600 and 3,800. Also, numerical simulation has been applied to verify the heat and flow behavior inside the heat exchangers. Findings The results indicated that using both nanofluids raised the thermal performance of all tested exchangers which have a various number of plates. While the major outcomes of this study showed that TiO 2 -Al 2 O 3 /water hybrid nanofluid has priority when compared to TiO 2 /water single type nanofluid. Utilization of TiO 2 -Al 2 O 3 /water nanofluid led to obtaining an average improvement of 7.5%, 9.6% and 12.3% in heat transfer of heat exchangers with 8, 12 and 16 plates, respectively. Originality/value In the present work, experimental and numerical analyzes have been conducted to investigate the influence of using TiO 2 -Al 2 O 3 /water hybrid nanofluid in various plate heat exchangers. The attained findings showed successful utilization of TiO 2 -Al 2 O 3 /water nanofluid. Based on the obtained results increasing the number of plates in the heat exchanger caused to obtain more increment by using both types of nanofluids.