Simplification of analytical models and incorporation with CFD for the performance predication of closed‐wet cooling towers

Simplified analytical models are developed for evaluating the thermal performance of closed‐wet cooling towers (CWCTs) for use with chilled ceilings in cooling of buildings. Two methods of simplification are used with regard to the temperature of spray water inside the tower. The results obtained from these models for a prototype cooling tower are very close to experimental measurements. The thermal performance of the cooling tower is evaluated under nominal conditions. The results show that the maximum difference in the calculated cooling water heat or air sensible heat between the two simplified methods and a general computational model is less than 3%. The analytical model distribution of the sensible heat along the tower is then incorporated with computational fluid dynamics (CFD) to assess the thermal performance of the tower. It is found that CFD results agree well with the analytical results when the air flow is simulated with air supply from the bottom of the tower, which represents a uniform air flow. CFD shows the importance of the uniform distribution of air and spray water to achieve optimum design. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Numerical simulation of closed wet cooling towers for chilled ceiling systems

A numerical technique for evaluating the performance of a closed wet cooling tower for chilled ceiling systems is presented. The technique is based on computational flow dynamics (CFD) for the two-phase flow of gas and water droplets. The eulerian approach is used for the gas phase flow and the lagrangian approach for the water droplet phase flow, with two-way coupling between two phases. Numerical simulation indicates that CFD can be used to predict the performance of a closed wet cooling tower, given the appropriate rate of heat generation from the heat exchanger. The technique is suitable for optimization of the design and operation of the cooling tower for chilled ceilings.     

A comprehensive approach to cooling tower design

In this paper, a mathematical model for a counterflow wet cooling tower is derived, which is based on one-dimensional heat and mass balance equations using the measured heat transfer coefficient. The balance equations are solved numerically to predict the temperature change of air and water, as well as the humidity as a function of the cooling tower high. Experimental measurements on two pilot-scale cooling towers were carried out in order to analyze the performance of different cooling tower filling materials. Also, the performance of other cooling tower elements, such as droplet separators and water spray nozzles, was investigated in the pilot experiments. The flow distribution, i.e. the velocity field, upstream to the filling material was predicted using the three-dimensional version of the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) code Fluent/uns, version 4.2. The calculated flow fields are presented for different distances between the inlet of the air and the filling material. In addition, the two-dimensional version of the CFD code Fluent/uns, version 4.2, was applied to predict the external airflow around the cooling tower and the backflow in different weather conditions in summer and winter. The research project was carried out in connection to an industrial cooling tower installation.     

Performance Analysis of Aluminum and Graphite Foam Heat Exchangers Under Countercurrent Arrangement

Due to the increasing power requirement and the limited available space in the vehicles, a countercurrent heat exchanger (HEX) is proposed for the position on the roof of the vehicle compartment. Furthermore, a new material, graphite foam with high thermal conductivity and low density, is a potential material for HEXs in vehicles. In order to evaluate the performance of the graphite foam HEX, the CFD computational fluid dynamics (CFD) approach is applied in a comparative study between the graphite foam and the aluminum HEXs under countercurrent flow condition. The analysis is conducted for the thermal performance (heat transfer coefficient) and the pressure loss. The simulation results show that the graphite foam HEX proves higher thermal performance than the aluminum HEX. However, due to the high pressure loss in the graphite foam HEX, the coefficient of performance in the graphite foam HEX is much lower than that of the aluminum HEX. A specific case study is carried out to evaluate the performance of graphite foam HEX as well. Useful recommendations are highlighted and provided to promote the development of the countercurrent flow HEXs in vehicles.     

Twisted bundle heat exchangers performance evaluation by CFD (CJ12/5054)

Shell and tube heat exchanger with single twisted tube bundle in five different twist angles, are studied using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and compared to the conventional shell and tube heat exchanger with single segmental baffles. Effect of shell-side nozzles configurations on heat exchanger performance is studied as well. Heat transfer rate and pressure drop are the main issues investigated in the paper. The results show that, for the same shell-side flow rate, the heat transfer coefficient of heat exchanger with twisted tube bundle is lower than that of the heat exchanger with segmental baffles while shell-side pressure drop of the former is even much lower than that of the latter. The comparison of heat transfer rate per unit pressure drop versus shell-side mass flow rate shows that heat exchanger with twisted tube bundle in both cases of perpendicular and tangential shell-side nozzles, has significant performance advantages over the segmental baffled heat exchanger. Optimum bundle twist angles for such exchangers are found to be 65 and 55° for all shell side flow rates.     

Solar enhanced natural draft dry cooling tower for geothermal power applications

This paper presents a new concept of hybrid cooling, named solar enhanced natural draft dry cooling tower (SENDDCT), in which solar collectors are added to traditional natural draft dry cooling towers to increase their performance. The purpose of using solar energy in this new cooling system is to increase the suction through the tower so that more air flow is achieved through the compact heat exchangers that cool condensers of a geothermal power plant. For the same size of the cooling tower, more air flow across the heat exchangers means more heat can be rejected by the system. The governing equations for the SENDDCT are similar to those of a conventional natural draft dry cooling tower except that solar heating is added after the heat exchanger bundles. Performance comparisons show that SENDDCT has substantial advantages over conventional natural draft dry cooling towers for geothermal power plants as well as standalone solar chimney power plants.     

Investigation of the thermal efficiency of a staggered elliptic-tube heat exchanger for aeroengine applications

In this paper, a numerical investigation of the thermal performance of a heat exchanger designed for aero engine applications is performed with the use of computational fluid dynamics (CFD). For this purpose, the exact geometry of the heat exchanger was modeled, and additionally the use of a porous medium methodology was adopted. For the latter the behaviour of the heat exchanger was described by experimentally derived pressure drop and heat transfer laws. The heat transfer performance of the heat exchanger can be described by the Nusselt number of the flow and the temperature distribution inside the heat exchanger. At the present work the CFD results regarding the overall and local Nusselt numbers and the temperature distributions were compared to available experimental data and were found to be in agreement. Thus, both approaches could be used for the detailed investigation of the thermal performance of the heat exchanger so that useful conclusions could be derived.     

舰载燃气轮机间冷器内部流动的三维数值模拟

板翅式换热器是舰载燃气轮机首选换热器形式。针对平直型翅片的矩形通道的结构特点,建立了流动换热分析的耦合计算模型,采用计算流体动力学（CFD）方法对间冷器的通道流场进行了数值模拟。给出并分析了计算区域内多个截面的温度、压力、速度、局部传热系数等参数的分布图形和变化趋势,并考察了不同工况下间冷器的工作能力。     

某型柴油机换热器设计及仿真分析

设计独立的换热器,降低水下工作柴油机中高负荷工况的排气温度.运用SolidWorks建立换热器模型并进行仿真分析,研究圆柱形换热器4种换热管布置方式对换热器温降与压损的影响.分析结果表明:设计的换热器可将排气温度由550.00℃降低到161.94℃,废气在换热器中的压损为5.95 kPa,降温效果和压损均满足相关工程要...     

Design of A Single Tube Fuel Oil Preheater

This article presents design analysis of a fuel oil preheater. The preheater is a concentric tube heat exchanger where the fuel oil is on the tube-side and the heating medium flows in the annular space. Two situations were addressed in this study. In the first case, an analytical model was developed where the required heat exchanger length, diameter and the fluid velocity were determined for a given heat transfer duty and for an allowable pressure loss. A detailed study was conducted by individually varying parameters such as pressure loss, preheater discharge temperature, and mass flow rate of the fuel oil. In each instance their influence on the predicted design of the heat exchanger was investigated. In the second case, an optimization strategy was proposed for a certain heat transfer duty. The heat exchanger dimensions and the fluid flow rate were selected such that the annual operating cost of the heat exchanger was minimized. In addition, a detailed study was conducted to understand the total annual operating cost as a function of the fuel oil outlet temperature and the fuel oil mass flow rate.     

Numerical Study of Heat Transfer and Analysis of Optimal Fin Pitch in a Wavy Fin-and-Tube Heat Exchanger

In this paper an analysis of laminar heat transfer and fluid flow in a wavy fin-and-tube heat exchanger has been carried out. Three-dimensional (3D) numerical simulation results of a circular tube heat exchanger were compared with published numerical and experimental results. The computational fluid dynamics (CFD) procedure was validated by comparing average Nusselt numbers, and good agreement between published and calculated results has been accomplished. The influence of inlet air velocity, varying from 0.5 to 5 m s^?1, as well as fin pitch, varying from 0.4 to 4 mm, on heat transfer and pressure drop conditions has been studied. The results have shown that there is an optimal fin pitch for each air velocity, which gives the best heat exchanger performance from the heat transfer point of view.     

Experimental study of a metal hydride vessel based on a finned spiral heat exchanger

The reaction time of hydrogen in metal hydride vessels (MHVs for short) is strongly influenced by the heat transfer from/to the hydride bed. In the present work an experimental study of the geometric and the operating parameters of a finned spiral heat exchanger has been carried out to identify their influence on the performance of the charging process of the MHV. The experimental results show that the charge time of the reactor is considerably reduced, when finned spiral heat exchanger is used. In addition, the effect of different parameters (flow mass and temperature of the cooling fluid, applied pressure, and hydrogen tank volume) has been discussed and obtained results show that a good choice of these parameters is important.     

Improvement of thermal performance of spiral heat exchanger on hydrogen storage by adding copper fins

The reaction time of hydrogen in metal-hydride vessels (MHVs for short) is strongly influenced by the heat transfer from/to the hydride bed. In the present work an experimental study of the geometric and the operating parameters of a finned spiral heat exchanger has been carried out to identify their influence on the performance of the charging process of the MHV. The experimental results show that the charge time of the reactor is considerably reduced, when finned spiral heat exchanger is used. In addition, the effect of different parameters (flow mass and temperature of the cooling fluid, applied pressure of hydrogen in the case of absorption and desorption) has been discussed and obtained results show that a good choice of these parameters is important.     

板式换热器性能的数值模拟

建立了人字形板式换热器冷热双流道的流体流动与传热计算模型,利用计算流体力学软件对5组不同速度工况下换热器内流体的流动和传热进行了数值模拟,分析了换热器流道内的速度场、温度场和压力场.结果表明:数值模拟得到的板式换热器进、出口温差和压降与试验测量值的误差均小于6%;换热器内流体的流动和传热存在明显的不均匀性,导致其进、出口的另一侧出现明显的传热"死区";换热器的总传热系数和流道阻力均随着流体流速的增大而增大.     

Performance Characteristics of a Closed-Circuit Cooling Tower With Multiple Paths

The performance of a closed-circuit wet cooling tower (CWCT) with multiple paths having a rated capacity of 9 kW has been studied experimentally. When the CWCT has to operate with a partial load, the required quantity of cooling water reduces and thereby the velocity of the process fluid inside the tubes decreases. The velocity of the process fluid can be increased by installing blocking tubes in the heat exchanger. The test section in this experiment has multiple paths that have been used as the inlet for cooling water that flows from the top part of the heat exchanger. The heat exchanger consists of eight rows and 12 columns and the tubes are in a staggered arrangement. Heat and mass transfer coefficients and temperature drops were calculated with several variations including multiple paths. The results obtained from this study were compared with those reported and found to conform well. The investigation indicates that a CWCT operating with two paths has higher heat and mass transfer coefficients than with one path.     

基于三维CFD技术的发动机冷却水套流动分析

利用计算流体力学软件对发动机冷却水套流动进行了三维数值模拟研究.研究结果表明:平均流速大于0.5m/s时,气缸体水套内表面的上部平均流速和换热系数均比下部高;缸盖火力面冷却效果较好,换热系数高于10kW/(m~2·K),流速大于1.0m/s,但冷却效果欠均匀;总压力降为38.2kPa;上水孔的布置和尺寸使缸盖下层的各火力面有较好的冷却效果.     

A decoupled method to identify affecting mechanism of crosswind on performance of a natural draft dry cooling tower

The natural draft dry cooling tower (NDDCT) has been increasingly used for cooling in power generation in arid area. As crosswind affects the performance of a NDDCT in a complicated way, and the basic affecting mechanism is unclear, attempts have been made to improve the performance of a NDDCT based on limited experiences. This paper introduces a decoupled method to study the complicated crosswind effects on the inlet and outlet of a NDDCT separately by computational fluid dynamics (CFD) modeling and hot state experiments. Accordingly, the basic affecting mechanism of crosswind on the NDDCT performance is identified. Crosswind changes the inlet flow field of a NDDCT and induces mainstream vortices inside the tower, so as to degrade the ventilation. Besides, low crosswind deflects the upward plume at the outlet to further degrade the ventilation, while high crosswind induces the low pressure area at the outlet to reduce the ventilation degradation.     

Heat and Mass Transfer in an Indirect Contact Cooling Tower: CFD Simulation and Experiment

The present work is focused on the computational analysis of heat and mass transfer in an indirect contact cooling tower. The main objectives of the study are to contribute to the understanding of heat and mass transfer mechanisms involved in the problem and to check the possibility of making use of a commercial computational fluid dynamics (CFD) code for simulating mass and heat transfer phenomena occurring in indirect cooling towers. The CFD model uses as boundary conditions the temperatures of the tubes obtained by a correlation model developed by Mizushina. The available mass transfer correlations for indirect cooling towers are presented and compared with a correlation obtained from CFD simulations. The assumption of analogy between heat and mass transfer is also discussed.     

Advanced Micro-Heat Exchangers for High Heat Flux

Three micro-heat exchangers for use in a liquid cooling system with a long offset strip, short offset strip, and chevron flow path based on the traditional heat transfer enhancement concepts were designed and tested. A straight channel heat exchanger was also made for comparison. The liquid crystal thermography method described by Lin and Yang (2005) was used to observe the flow and temperature distributions in the micro-heat exchangers. The test results show that the chevron channel heat exchanger provides the lowest thermal resistance. However, its pressure drop is also the highest, approximately five times higher than that for other three heat exchangers. The offset strip heat exchangers provide better thermal performance than does the straight channel heat exchanger. The performance of the heat exchanger with the shorter strip is better than that of heat exchanger with longer strip. From the above results, all of the three micro-heat exchangers with conventional heat transfer enhancement showed less thermal resistance than the straight channel heat exchanger. The conventional heat transfer techniques may be effectively applied in the high-flux micro-heat exchanger design.     

太阳辐射强度和温度对增强型冷却塔换热性能影响的研究

太阳能增强型自然通风冷却塔(SENDDCT)作为一种新型空气冷却系统,可利用太阳能提高自然通风冷却塔的效率。利用FLUENT软件建立太阳能增强型冷却塔的三维模型,研究太阳辐射强度和环境温度对其性能的影响;同时设计并搭建太阳能增强型冷却塔的实验系统,在实际天气条件下研究太阳辐射强度对其换热性能的影响。模拟结果表明太阳辐射强度一定时,通过换热器的空气流速以及换热率都会随着环境温度升高而降低。太阳辐射强度为500 W时,环境温度由10℃升到40℃,换热率由1.106 kW下降到0.281 kW。实验结果表明有辐射时冷却塔入口处的平均空气温度要比无辐射时的高5℃;实验期间无辐射时的平均换热率为0.682 kW,有辐射时的平均换热率为0.794 kW,即利用太阳能将平均换热率提高了0.112 kW。