Melting Characteristics of Carbon Nanotube (CNT) Dispersed Latent Heat Storage Material in Horizontally Heated Rectangular Tank

This paper deals with the experimental study of melting heat storage process of the carbon nanotube (CNT) dispersed latent heat storage material in rectangular tank with horizontal heating surface on the bottom. A heat transfer fluid in which CNT is solubilized and dispersed has the potential to greatly improve heat exchange performance because of its thermal conductivity raising. Dispersing CNT can increase the thermal conductivity, and since it does not hinder convection, it can be expected to promote heat transfer. The experiment was performed using CNT dispersed latent heat storage material while changing the heating surface temperature. It was observed that the total melting time of CNT dispersed latent heat storage material was longer than that without CNT. It is shown that the increase in viscosity due to CNT dispersion suppresses the generation of convection and does not lead to the promotion of melting heat transfer.