Augmentation of outside tube heat transfer coefficient during condensation of steam over horizontal copper tubes

An experimental investigation has been carried out to find the condensing side heat transfer coefficient, h_o, during condensation of steam over a plain tube, a circular integral-fin tube(CIFT) and a spine integral-fin tube(SIFT). The CIFT and SIFT have enhanced the h_o by a factor of 2.5 and 3.2 respectively. The experimental values of h_o for CIFT were compared with those predicted from different models. The Honda and Nozu model underpredicted the values of h_o in a range of 10 to 20 percent.     

Augmentation of heat transfer during filmwise condensation of steam and R-134a over single horizontal finned tubes

An experimental investigation has been carried out to augment the heat transfer rate by enhancing the heat transfer coefficient during the condensation of pure vapours of steam and R-134a over horizontal finned tubes. The study was conducted for plain tubes, circular integral-fin tubes (CIFTs), spine integral-fin tubes (SIFTs) and parially spined circular integral-fin tubes (PCIFTs). The SIFT out performed the CIFT for the condensation of R-134a by approximately 16%. However, the spines were found most effective in the bottom side of the CIFT. The PCIFTs with the spines only in the bottom side of the tube augmented the heat transfer coefficient by 20% and 11% for the condensation of steam and R-134a, respectively, in comparison to the CIFT.     

R1234ze(E)与R134a在水平双侧强化管外的凝结换热对比实验

搭建了水平单管降膜蒸发试验台,以第四代制冷剂R1234ze(E)和第三代制冷剂R134a作为工质,在新型水平双侧强化管管外分别进行了改变管内水速、热流密度和冷凝温度条件的凝结换热实验。使用Wilson-Gnielinski图解法计算得到管内表面传热系数h_i,进一步采用热阻分离法分离出两种制冷剂的管外表面传热系数,并分析了管内冷却水水速、冷凝温度和壁面过冷度的变化对其换热性能的影响。实验结果表明:同根实验管下不同制冷剂凝结换热性能的差异与制冷剂物性与强化管结构之间的匹配特性有关,实验管型下,R1234ze(E)的管外凝结换热性能高于R134a。     

Condensation heat transfer of R-134a inside a microfin tube with different tube inclinations

Experimental heat transfer studies during condensation of pure R-134a vapor inside a single microfin tube have been carried out. The microfin tube has been provided with different tube inclination angles of the direction of fluid flow from horizontal, α. The data are acquired for seven different tube inclinations, α, in a range of −90 to +90° and three mass velocities of 54, 81, and 107 kg/m²-s for each inclination angle during condensation of R-134a vapor. The experimental results indicate that the tube inclination angle of, α, affects the condensation heat transfer coefficient in a significant manner. The highest heat transfer coefficient is attained at inclination angle of α = +30°. The effect of inclination angle, α, on heat transfer coefficient, h, is more prominent at low vapor quality and mass velocity. A correlation has also been developed to predict the condensing side heat transfer coefficient for different vapor qualities and mass velocities.     

Dimensional analysis on the evaporation and condensation of refrigerant R-134a in minichannel plate heat exchangers

Two-phase flow analysis for the evaporation and condensation of refrigerants within the minichannel plate heat exchangers is an area of ongoing research, as reported in the literatures reviewed in this article. The previous studies mostly correlated the two-phase heat transfer and pressure drop in these minichannel heat exchangers using theories and empirical correlations that had previously been established for two-phase flows in conventional macrochannels. However, the two-phase flow characteristics within micro/minichannels may be more sophisticated than conventional macrochannels, and the empirical correlations for one scale may not work for the other one. The objective of this study is to investigate the parameters that affect the two-phase heat transfer within the minichannel plate heat exchangers, and to utilize the dimensional analysis technique to develop appropriate correlations. For this purpose, thermo-hydrodynamic performance of three minichannel brazed-type plate heat exchangers was analyzed experimentally in this study. These heat exchangers were used as the evaporator and condenser of an automotive refrigeration system where the refrigerant R-134a flowed on one side and a 50% glycol–water mixture on the other side in a counter-flow configuration. The heat transfer coefficient for the single-phase flow of the glycol–water mixture was first obtained using a modified Wilson plot technique. The results from the single-phase flow analysis were then used in the two-phase flow analysis, and correlations for the refrigerant evaporation and condensation heat transfer were developed. Correlations for the single-phase and two-phase Fanning friction factors were also obtained based on a homogenous model. The results of this study showed that the two-phase theories and correlations that were established for conventional macrochannel heat exchangers may not hold for the minichannel heat exchangers used in this study.     

Theoretical Analysis and Experimental Investigation on Local Heat Transfer Characteristics of HFC-134a Forced-Convection Condensation inside Smooth Horizontal Tubes

An improved analysis model is presented for predicting the local heat transfer coefficient of forced condensation in the annular flow region inside smooth horizontal tubes. Heat transfer experiments for R-12 and R-134a are conducted inside a condensing tube with an inner diameter of 11 mm and a length of 13 m. The mass flux ranged from 200 to 510 kg/m²s, and the vapor qualities varied from 1.0 to 0.0. Compared with the experimental data, the numerical results have a deviation of not more than 20% and 25% for 80% of the total 47 points of R-12 and 88% of the total 226 points of R-134a, respectively.     

A Prediction Model for Condensation on Single Horizontal Rectangular Fin Tube

INTRODUCTI0NItiswellknownthatusingintegralfinnedtubet0replacesm0othtubemayenhancecondensati0nheattransfer.Predictingcondensationheattransfercoeffi-cientofthefinnedtubeisnecessaryforapplicationandf0ranalyzingtheeffectsofworkingcondition,work-ingfluidpropertiesandfingeometry.Therefore,re-searchersalwayspayattentiontoit.Thefirstm0delwasbuiltbyBeattyandKatz[11.Itisagravity-drivingm0delthatneglectstheinfluence0fsurfacetensi0n.Althoughitmaywellpredictc0ndensationoflowsur-facetensionfluidsonlow…     

两种三维双侧强化管管外R245fa凝结换热的实验对比

为研究环保制冷剂R245fa在水平强化管外凝结换热特性及表面结构对管内外换热性能的影响,分别对三维齿结构低肋管(A管)和斜翅管(B管)进行管外凝结换热实验。在数据处理方法上,采用Wilson-Gnielinski图解法获得管内水侧对流换热系数及其计算关联式,再利用热阻分离法获得管外凝结换热系数。实验结果分析得出A管和B管的管内换热系数强化倍率分别为2.04和2.98,管外强化倍率分别为1.77～1.94,1.87～2.14,B管管内外换热性能都优于A管,造成两种强化管内外换热性能差异的主要因素是强化管内的螺纹高度和管外翅化比。     

Experimental Study on R-410a Evaporation Heat Transfer Characteristics in Oblong Shell and Plate Heat Exchanger

The evaporation heat transfer experiments were conducted with an oblong shell and plate heat exchanger without oil in the refrigerant loop using R-410A, a mixture of 50 wt% R-32 and 50 wt% R-125 that exhibits azeotropic behavior. An experimental refrigerant loop has been established to measure the evaporation heat transfer coefficient h _r of R-410A in a vertical oblong shell and plate heat exchanger. Four vertical counter-flow channels were formed in the oblong shell and plate heat exchanger by four plates having a corrugated trapezoid shape of a 45° chevron angle. The upflow of the boiling R-410A in one channel receives heat from the hot downflow of water in the other channel. The effects of the refrigerant mass flux, average heat flux, refrigerant saturation temperature, and vapor quality of R-410A on the measured data were explored in detail. The results indicate that a rise in the refrigerant mass flux causes an increase in the h _r . Raising the imposed wall heat flux was found to slightly improve h _r . Finally, at a higher refrigerant saturation temperature, the h _r is found to be lower. Based on the present data, an empirical correlation of the evaporation heat transfer coefficient was proposed.     

Flow boiling heat transfer coefficient of R-134a/R-290/R-600a mixture in smooth horizontal tubes using varied heat flux method

An experimental study on in-tube flow boiling heat transfer of R-134a/R-290/R-600a refrigerant mixture has been carried out under varied heat flux test conditions. The heat transfer coefficients are experimentally measured at temperatures between ?8 and 5 °C for mass flow rates of 3–5 g s^?1. Acetone is used as a hot fluid which flows in the outer tube of diameter 28.57 mm while the refrigerant mixture flows in the inner tube of diameters 9.52 and 12.7 mm. By regulating the acetone flow conditions, the heat flux is maintained between 2 and 8 kW/m² and the pressure of the refrigerant is maintained between 3.2 and 5 bar. The comparison of experimental results with the familiar correlations shows that the correlations over predict the heat transfer coefficients for this mixture when stratified and stratified-wavy flow prevail. Multiple regression technique is used to evolve and modify existing correlations to predict the heat transfer coefficient of the refrigerant mixture. It is found that the modified version of Lavin–Young correlation (1965) predicts the heat transfer coefficient of the considered mixture within an average deviation of ±20.5 %.     

Experimental study of dropwise condensation on plasma-ion implanted stainless steel tubes

Plasma-ion implantation was used to achieve stable dropwise condensation of saturated steam on stainless steel tubes. For the investigation of the efficiency of plasma-ion implantation regarding the condensation process a condenser was constructed in order to measure the heat flux density and the heat transfer coefficient h_c for the condensation of steam on the outside surface of a single horizontal tube. For tubes implanted with a nitrogen ion dose of 10¹⁶ cm⁻², the heat transfer coefficient h_c was found to be larger, by a factor of 3.2, in comparison to values theoretically calculated by the corrected Nusselt film theory. The heat flux density and the heat transfer coefficient h_c were found to increase with increasing ion dose and steam pressure. The heat transfer coefficient decreases with increasing surface subcooling as it has been found in former work for dropwise condensation on ion implanted vertical plates.     

Correlation for boiling heat transfer of R-134a in horizontal tubes including effect of tube diameter

A Chen-type correlation for flow boiling heat transfer of R-134a in horizontal tubes was modified taking into account the effect of tube diameter. The effect of tube diameter on flow boiling heat transfer coefficient was characterized by the Weber number in gas phase. Results showed that this correlation could be applied to a wide range of tube diameters (0.5–11-mm-ID). In addition, the dryout point and the heat transfer characteristics after the dryout point were also investigated based on the annular flow model. The proposed experimental expressions to predict both the dryout quality and the post-dryout heat transfer coefficient could also be applied to a wide range of tube diameter (0.5–11-mm-ID).     

Experimental study of evaporation heat transfer of R-134a inside a corrugated tube with different tube inclinations

Experimental heat transfer studies during evaporation of R-134a inside a corrugated tube have been carried out. The corrugated tube has been provided with different tube inclination angles of the direction of fluid flow from horizontal, α. The experiments were performed for seven different tube inclinations, α, in a range of − 90° to + 90° and four mass velocities of 46, 81, 110 and 136 kg m^− 2 s^− 1 for each tube inclination angle during evaporation of R-134a. Data analysis demonstrate that the tube inclination angle, α, affects the boiling heat transfer coefficient in a significant manner. The effect of tube inclination angle, α, on heat transfer coefficient, h, is more prominent at low vapor quality and mass velocity. In the low vapor quality region, the heat transfer coefficient, h, for the + 90° inclined tube is about 62% more than that of the − 90° inclined tube. The results also showed that at all mass velocities, the highest average heat transfer coefficient were achieved for α = + 90°. An empirical correlation has also been developed to predict the heat transfer coefficient during flow boiling inside a corrugated tube with different tube inclinations.     

Experimental study of evaporation heat transfer characteristics of refrigerants R-134a and R-407C in horizontal small tubes

An experiment is carried out here to investigate the characteristics of the evaporation heat transfer for refrigerants R-134a and R-407C flowing in horizontal small tubes having the same inside diameter of 0.83 or 2.0 mm. In the experiment for the 2.0-mm tubes, the refrigerant mass flux G is varied from 200 to 400 kg/m² s, imposed heat flux q from 5 to 15 kW/m², inlet vapor quality x_in from 0.2 to 0.8 and refrigerant saturation temperature T_sat from 5 to 15 °C. While for the 0.83-mm tubes, G is varied from 800 to 1500 kg/m² s with the other parameters varied in the same ranges as those for D_i = 2.0 mm. In the study the effects of the refrigerant vapor quality, mass flux, saturation temperature and imposed heat flux on the measured evaporation heat transfer coefficient h_r are examined in detail. The experimental data clearly show that both the R-134a and R-407C evaporation heat transfer coefficients increase almost linearly and significantly with the vapor quality of the refrigerant, except at low mass flux and high heat flux. Besides, the evaporation heat transfer coefficients also increase substantially with the rises in the imposed heat flux, refrigerant mass flux and saturation temperature. At low R-134a mass flux and high imposed heat flux the evaporation heat transfer coefficient in the smaller tubes (D_i = 0.83 mm) may decline at increasing vapor quality when the quality is high, due to the partial dryout of the refrigerant flow in the smaller tubes at these conditions. We also note that under the same x_in, T_sat, G, q and D_i, refrigerant R-407C has a higher h_r when compared with that for R-134a. Finally, an empirical correlation for the R-134a and R-407C evaporation heat transfer coefficients in the small tubes is proposed.     

Evaporation heat transfer and pressure drop of refrigerant R-134a in a small pipe

An experiment was carried out to investigate the characteristics of the evaporation heat transfer and pressure drop for refrigerant R-134a flowing in a horizontal small circular pipe having an inside diameter of 2.0 mm. The data are useful in designing more compact and effective evaporators for various refrigeration and air conditioning systems. The effects of the imposed wall heat flux, mass flux, vapor quality and saturation temperature of R-134a on the measured evaporation heat transfer and pressure drop were examined in detail. When compared with the data for larger pipes (D_i ≥ 8.0 mm) reported in the literature, the evaporation heat transfer coefficient for the small pipe considered here is about 30–80% higher for most situations. Moreover, we noted that in the small pipe the evaporation heat transfer coefficient is higher at a higher imposed wall heat flux except in the high vapor quality region, at a higher saturation temperature, and at a higher mass flux when the imposed heat flux is low. In addition, the measured pressure drop is higher for increases in the mass flux and imposed wall heat flux. Based on the present data, empirical correlations were proposed for the evaporation heat transfer coefficients and friction factors.     

Effect of pore size on the nucleate pool boiling of structured enhanced tubes

In this study, pool boiling test results are provided for the structured enhanced tubes having pores with connecting gaps. The surface geometry of the present tube is similar to that of Turbo-B. Three tubes with different pore size (0.20 mm, 0.23 mm and 0.27 mm) were manufactured and tested using R-11, R-123 and R-134a. The pore size which yields the maximum heat transfer coefficient varied depending on the refrigerant. For R-134a, the maximum heat transfer coefficient was obtained for the tube having 0.27 mm pore size. For R-11 and R-123, the optimum pore size was 0.23 mm. One novel feature of the present tubes is that their boiling curves do not show a ‘cross-over’ characteristic, which existing pored tubes do. The connecting gaps of the present tube are believed to serve an additional route for the liquid supply and delay the dry-out of the tunnel. The present tubes yield the heat transfer coefficients approximately equal to those of the existing pored enhanced tubes. At the heat flux 40 kW/m² and saturation temperature 4.4° C, the heat transfer coefficients of the present tubes are 6.5 times larger for R-11, 6.0 times larger for R-123 and 5.0 times larger for R-134a than that of the smooth tube     

Modified Wilson Plots for Enhanced Heat Transfer Experiments: Current Status and Future Perspectives

Heat transfer coefficients for enhanced tubes are typically measured indirectly using the “Wilson plot” method to first characterize the thermal performance of the one side (heating or cooling supply) and then to obtain the heat transfer data for the enhanced side based on the Wilson plot results. A brief history of the Wilson plot evolution and alternative methods to the Wilson plot, including the advantages and disadvantages, are discussed as applied for enhanced heat transfer. A slight modification to the Briggs and Young (1969) method is proposed so that the experimental errors can be propagated through the method, allowing us to estimate the error in the generated correlations. Furthermore, a new method based on unconstrained minimization is proposed as an alternative to the least-squares regression. As an example, both methods have been applied to two enhanced boiling tubes (the most recent generation) and heat transfer coefficients were compared against direct wall temperature based heat transfer coefficient measurements made on the same tubes for water flow with high-performance internal helical ribs. Both the unconstrained minimization method and the modified Briggs and Young (1969) method performed well and predicted the same heat transfer performance within experimental uncertainty for two databases taken on two different experimental facilities. Furthermore, if the presently modified Wilson plot method is utilized, and the form of the correlating equation is chosen judiciously and is only applied within the range of experimental conditions tested, the results garnered from the analysis can very adequately predict the local heat transfer performance.     

Evaporation Heat Transfer Coefficients of R-446A

ABSTRACT

The present study investigated the evaporation heat transfer coefficients of R-446A, as a low global warming potential alternative refrigerant to R-410A. The evaporation heat transfer coefficients were obtained by measuring the wall temperature of a straight stainless tube and refrigerant pressure. The heat transfer coefficients were measured for the quality range from 0.05 to 0.95, the mass flux from 100 to 400 kg/m²s, heat flux from 10 to 30 kW/m², and saturation temperature from 5 to 10°C. The evaporation heat transfer coefficient of R-410A was verified by comparing the measured evaporation heat transfer coefficient with the value predicted by the existing correlation. The evaporation heat transfer coefficient of R-446A was measured using a proven experimental apparatus. When the heat flux was 10 kW/m², the evaporation heat transfer coefficient of R-446A was always higher than that of R-410A. But, when the heat flux was 30 kW/m², the evaporation heat transfer coefficient of R-446A was measured to be lower than that of R-410A near the dry-out point. The effect of the tube diameter on the R-446A evaporation heat transfer coefficient was negligible. The effect of saturation pressure on the evaporation heat transfer coefficient was prominent in the low quality region where the nucleate boiling was dominant.     

Condensation heat transfer and pressure drop characteristics of R-134a in an annular helical pipe

Condensation heat transfer and pressure drop data of R-134a in annular helical pipes is of significant importance to the effective design and reliable operation of helical pipe heat exchangers for refrigeration, air-conditioning, and many other applications. This paper presents the experimental investigation on condensation heat transfer and pressure drop characteristics of R-134a in an annular helical pipe. The average condensation heat transfer coefficients and pressure drops were experimentally determined for R-134a at three different saturated temperatures (35 °C, 40 °C, and 46 °C). The experimental results are compared with the data available in the literature for helical and straight pipes.     

Complete condensation in a vertical tube passive condenser

An experimental study is performed for the steam condensation in a vertical tube where steam is completely condensed. A condenser tube is submerged in a water pool where the heat from the condenser tube is removed through boiling heat transfer. The experiment data showed that the operating pressure is uniquely determined by inlet steam flow rate for the complete condensation. The condensation heat transfer rate increases and the condensation heat transfer coefficient decreases with the system pressure. For the condenser submerged in a saturated water pool, strong primary pressure dependency was observed on the condensation heat transfer.