This study reports on the fabrication of nanofluids/micro fluids (NFs/MFs) with experimental and theoretical investigation of thermal conductivity (TC) and viscosity of diethylene glycol (DEG) base NFs/MFs containing copper nanoparticles (Cu NPs) and copper microparticles (Cu MPs). For this purpose, Cu NPs (20-40 nm) and Cu MPs (0.5-1.5 μm) were dispersed in DEG with particle loading between 1 wt% and 3 wt%. Ultrasonic agitation was used for dispersion and preparation of stable NFs/MFs, and thus the use of surfactants was avoided. The objectives were investigation of impact of size of Cu particle and concentration on TC and viscosity of NFs/MFs on DEG as the model base liquid. The physicochemical properties of all particles and fluids were characterized by using various techniques including Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Dynamic Light Scattering (DLS) techniques. Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis was performed to study particles' surfaces. NFs and MFs exhibited a higher TC than the base liquid, while NFs outperformed MFs showing a potential for their use in heat exchange applications. The TC and viscosity of NFs and MFs were presented, along with a comparison with values from predictive models. While Maxwell model was good at predicting the TC of MFs, it underestimated the TC of NFs, revealing that the model is not directly applicable to the NF systems.
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