Project description
Revealing new insight into nanofluid flow behaviour
Nanofluids are colloidal suspensions of nanometre-sized solid particles in a base fluid. A unique property is their modified flowing behaviour on surfaces stemming from internal structuring forces between nanospecies. This results in enhanced oil recovery compared to standard brine solutions. Funded by the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions programme, the NANOSLIP project plans to gain a better understanding of how nanofluids behave at the interface with oils. In particular, researchers will investigate how ultrathin film nanofluids can reduce drag in response to shear between an immiscible liquid and a solid surface via colloidal probe techniques. Further insight into nanofluid behaviour will propel their use in oil recovery, lubrication, heat dissipation, soil remediation, nanomedicine and colloidal stability.
Objective
Nano-fluids (NFs) are colloidal suspensions of nano-species (NS) that are electrostatically or sterically stabilised, with aqueous NFs including nanoparticle suspensions (silica, sulfate latex), polyelectrolytes, and self-assembled structures including micelles, polymersomes and liposomes. NFs are used in many industrial/practical applications, including controlling colloidal assembly of larger nano- and micro-sized species in solution, improving heat flux in industrial processes and solar collectors, reducing friction in oils and greases, enhanced drug delivery and as MRI contrast agents. A unique property of NFs is their modified spreading/flowing behaviour on surfaces due to internal structuring forces between NS, which enables NFs to displace immiscible liquids from surfaces. This enhanced spreading/flowing behaviour has demonstrated enhanced oil recovery compared to standard brine solutions and has been rationalised as due to a reduction of friction at the NF/oil interface. Aside from the presence of a stable nano-thin NF film beneath oil during displacement being confirmed optically via interferometry, there are no experiments to date that have probed this interface directly, and thus the friction/drag reducing properties at the liquid/NF interface remain unexplored. The scientific goal of this proposed project is to gain a better understanding of liquid flow at a liquid/NF interface, in particular, how the presence of an ultrathin film of NFs – with enhanced spreading and internal properties – can reduce drag in response to shear between an immiscible liquid and a solid surface via colloidal probe atomic force microscopy. Understanding this phenomenon will fill the current knowledge gap in the fields of NFs and boundary slip and will have direct impact on current applications of NFs in oil recovery, lubrication, heat dissipation, soil remediation, nanomedicine, and colloidal stability.
Fields of science
Programme(s)
Funding Scheme
MSCA-IF - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships (IF)Coordinator
BS8 1QU Bristol
United Kingdom