Investigation Of Heat Transfer Effects Of Metal Nanoparticle Decorated Nanocomposites And Its Applications In Methanol Oxidation

In this study, the usability of Typha shuttleworthii tassel (TT), a wetland plant and known as rushwort or cattail, as a carbonaceous nanomaterial in energy applications was evaluated. By grinding TT after chemical activation and carbonization processes, carbonaceous TT (CTT) with a size between 50-250 nm was obtained. After appropriate functionalization processes of CTT, AuNPs with an average size of 30 nm were successfully complexed with CTT. The complex formation process was carried out by a self-assembly mechanism via the carbodiimide route. The obtained CTT-AuNPs were characterized by SEM and EDX analyses. The nanofluids formed by CTT-AuNP with 0.01%-0.5% ethylene glycol by mass maintained their stability for 12 hours. The two-way heat transfer performance of nanofluids in a cubic container was investigated theoretically using MATLAB and experimentally using a thermal camera. The highest heat transfer coefficient obtained was 0.367±0.021 W/mK. Theoretical calculations and experimental measurements were found to be compatible. Finally, the usability of the produced nanomaterial directly in methanol fuel cell (DMFC) applications was tested. For this purpose, CTT-AuNP was used as an electrode for methanol oxidation reaction (MOR). While the peak current density of GC was approximately 0.199 mA/cm2, it reached the maximum value of 1.229 mA/cm2 on the GC/CTT-AuNP electrode surface containing Au nanoparticles. It has been understood that AuNP modified carbon material electrocatalytically increases methanol oxidation. In scanning speed studies performed on GC/CTT-AuNP electrode, voltammograms of 0.5 M methanol in 0.1 M perchloric acid environment were taken and it was observed that the oxidation of methanol was diffusion controlled. As a result, it has been seen that AuNP-doped carbon nanomaterial has the potential to be used in methanol oxidation reactions. It has been determined that the material obtained from a plant abundant in the natural environment is an alternative nanomaterial that can be used as a heat transfer component with an environmentally friendly and high added value catalytic product.