The efficacy of nanofluids as coolants is investigated in the present study. For the nanofluids tested, systematic measurements confirmed that the thermophysical properties of the base fluid are considerably affected by the nanoparticle addition. A typical nanofluid, namely a 4% CuO suspension in water, is selected next and its performance in a commercial herringbone-type PHE is experimentally studied. The new experimental data confirmed that besides the physical properties, the type of flow inside the heat exchanging equipment also affects the efficacy of a nanofluid as coolant. The fluid viscosity seems also to be a crucial factor for the heat exchanger performance. It is concluded that in industrial heat exchangers, where large volumes of nanofluids are necessary and turbulent flow is usually developed, the substitution of conventional fluids by nanofluids seems inauspicious. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.