Research progress in nanofluids with graphene addition

Lubrication and cooling are two important issues in the current industrial field. The former is of great significance to the energy consumption caused by friction, which is directly related to the service reliability and life of the components in the mechanical field. The latter is very important for the management and application of the final generation of thermal energy in the process of energy conversion. Combination of them exists widely in fields such as aerospace, automobile machinery, etc. Addition of nano-materials into working fluid can not only significantly improve the thermal conductivity of heat transfer fluids, but also achieve anti-wear and lubrication of mechanical parts, showing excellent mechanical and thermal comprehensive properties. Nanofluids are a good working medium for both aspects. In this paper, in view of the hotspot of graphene nanofluids, the theoretical basis and method of dispersion of graphene nanofluids were reviewed, and the factors affecting the suspension stability of graphene nanofluids were investigated. The thermal conductivity mechanism, the influencing factors and the current progress of graphene nanofluids were analyzed. The main reasons for the non-large-scale application of nanofluids were analyzed. The progress of graphene as an additive in the field of lubrication was reviewed. Finally, the application design of graphene nanofluid synergistically enhanced heat transfer and antifriction lubrication was proposed. In the current spacecraft and other applications, due to the lack of extensive research on the thermal mechanical coupling performance of graphene nanofluids and the stability of spacecraft and long-term operational reliability, future research should be based on the current aerospace heat transfer medium and focus on the targeted design of nanoparticles. The research on dynamic flow heat transfer performance and loop life based on space environment should be carried out, which will lay a theoretical foundation and provide technical support for the future application of nanofluids in the spacecrafts.