Engine Oil-Based Ternary Nanofluid Heat Transfer Predicted with Taguchi Optimization

A mixture that sounds deceptively simple — engine oil seeded with three different kinds of nanoparticles, flowing between two active parallel plates — is the subject of a new numerical study on heat transfer. A new numerical study examines how such a Boger ternary nanofluid behaves in an active parallel plates system, where the plates expand or contract while a magnetic field and heat absorption or generation act on the fluid. The research, published in Discover Materials, combines a numerical Runge-Kutta Fehlberg fourth-fifth order solver with the Taguchi optimization technique, which is used to evaluate the heat transport rate for different parameters.

The study is motivated by advanced heat transfer systems that require improved viscoelastic properties, high thermal conductivity and carefully controlled fluid motion. Adding ternary nanoparticles to such a base fluid, the authors argue, offers opportunities to enhance heat transfer while retaining desirable rheological properties. The dynamic interaction of the parallel active plates then serves as an additional lever for controlling fluid movement and the properties of the thermal boundary layer.

The specific configuration investigated is the flow of a Boger ternary nanofluid through parallel active plates subjected to a magnetic field and heat absorption or generation, with the analysis centered on nonlinear radiative heat flux. According to the authors, the work uniquely focuses on parallel active plates, whose dynamic interaction substantially modifies both the temperature and momentum boundary layers when a magnetic field is present. The study focuses on parallel active plates, whose dynamic interaction substantially modifies both the temperature and momentum boundary layers when a magnetic field is present.

Mathematically, the researchers start from the governing equations for the flow and temperature fields and transform them into dimensionless ordinary differential equations using suitable similarity variables.

On top of the solver, the team applies the Taguchi technique to evaluate the heat transport rate for different parameters.

The major outcomes reported in the abstract trace a clear picture of how geometry and material properties steer the flow. During plate contraction, velocity profiles lean toward the lower plate, concentrating the motion near that boundary. During expansion, by contrast, the flow redistributes more gradually across the gap, spreading the momentum in a softer, more even pattern. The study reports that during plate contraction, velocity profiles lean toward the lower plate, while during expansion the flow redistributes more gradually.

Higher solvent concentrations have viscous effects, reducing fluid velocity and convective heat transfer, the study finds.

Thermal effects behave differently from viscous ones. The increase in radiation and heat generation or absorption parameters strengthens the temperature profile, according to the study.

The significance of the different parameters on velocity and thermal profiles is shown via graphical representations.

Subject of Research: Numerical modeling of magnetic-field-influenced Boger ternary nanofluid flow between active parallel plates with Taguchi-based heat transfer optimization

Article Title: Optimization technique to predict the heat transfer using engine oil-based ternary nanofluid flow in active parallel plates system

Article References: Milana, K. R., Kumar, V., Juneja, S., Niranjan, R. S., Karthik, K., Reddy, P. S. K., & Kumar, K. M. A. (2026). Optimization technique to predict the heat transfer using engine oil-based ternary nanofluid flow in active parallel plates system. Discover Materials. https://doi.org/10.1007/s43939-026-01038-y

Image Credits: AI Generated

DOI: 10.1007/s43939-026-01038-y

Keywords: ternary nanofluid, Boger fluid, parallel plates, heat transfer, Taguchi method, Runge-Kutta Fehlberg, magnetic field, radiation, engine oil, numerical simulation, Optimization, technique