Volume 3: Innovative Solutions for Energy Transitions: Part II

Monte Carlo Simulation Study on the Colloidal Stability of Nanoparticles in Molten Salts Feng Ji, Weilong Wang , Juntong Xing, Jing Ding, Xiaolan Wei

Abstract

Molten salt-based nanofluids have better thermal properties than pure molten salt due to dispersing nanoparticles. However, the aggregation of nanoparticle can waken heat transfer. In this paper, Kinetic Monte Carlo simulations based on the classical DLVO theory were carried out to predict the MgO nanoparticle size distribution suspending in the molten NaNO3 with different initial particle diameters. The result suggests that nanoparticles with size of 10nm~30nm tend to form clusters and larger diameters such as 40nm and 50nm could lead to a more stable system for molten salt nanofluid.

Keywords molten salt nanofluids, Kinetic Monte Carlo, aggregation and sedimentation, DLVO theory