Modeling nanofluid sessile drop evaporation

Modeling predictions for the evaporation of nanofluid pinned sessile drops are reported. Drops of fluids containing suspended nanoparticles have reduced evaporation rates relative to their pure fluid counterparts due to the agglomeration of nanoparticles at the surface resulting in a reduction in available liquid at the drop surface for evaporation. The present model implements a mechanism for the reduction in the surface concentration of the evaporating liquid based on the fractal geometry of nanoparticle agglomerates. Nanoparticle packing near the drop pinned contact line results in regions where a maximum nanoparticle volume fraction is attained, leading to significant reductions in the evaporative mass flux. Model predictions for the evaporation rate of pure ethanol and ethanol containing suspended aluminum nanoparticles are compared to experiments from the literature with excellent agreement for the reduction in evaporation rate due to nanoparticle loading and in reasonable quantitative agreement for the evaporation rate. The maximum allowable nanoparticle volume fraction is shown to be an important parameter in governing the evaporation rate of nanofluid sessile drops.