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Abstract: Methyl and ethyl alcohol have good thermophysical characteristics for use in refrigeration systems. The purpose of this study was to measure the thermal conductivity of ethyl and methyl alcohol solutions to determine if they can become competitive secondary fluids. A Thermal Constants Analyzer measured the thermal conductivity of various 20-wt% ethyl alcohol and 20 wt-% propyl alcohol solutions using the Transient Plane Source (TPS) method. Measurements were taken after 1, 2, and 3 seconds at power outputs of 20-30 mW. Results showed that the thermal conductivity increased with temperature for every solution, and followed a relatively linear trend. The ethyl alcohol 18 wt-% + propyl alcohol 2 wt-% had the highest thermal conductivity, and seemed to be the only solution that would make an effective secondary fluid.

Reference: KTH Royal Institute of Technology (2015) 1-8

DOI: 10.18462/iir.icr.2015.0565