The Impact of Nanofluids on Droplet/Spray Cooling of a Heated Surface: A Critical Review

Cooling by impinging droplets has been the subject of several studies for decades and still is, and, in the last few years, the potential heat transfer enhancement obtained thanks to nanofluids’ use has received increased interest. Indeed, the use of high thermal conductivity fluids, such as nanofluids’, is considered today as a possible way to strongly enhance this heat transfer process. This enhancement is related to several physical mechanisms. It is linked to the nanofluids’ rheology, their degree of stabilization, and how the presence of the nanoparticles impact the droplet/substrate dynamics. Although there are several articles on droplet impact dynamics and nanofluid heat transfer enhancement, there is a lack of review studies that couple these two topics. As such, this review aims to provide an analysis of the available literature dedicated to the dynamics between a single nanofluid droplet and a hot substrate, and the consequent enhancement or reduction of heat transfer. Finally, we also conduct a review of the available publications on nanofluids spray cooling. Although using nanofluids in spray cooling may seem a promising option, the few works present in the literature are not yet conclusive, and the mechanism of enhancement needs to be clarified.