Thermo-hydraulic behavior of ice slurry in an offset strip-fin plate heat exchanger

Ice slurry is a promising alternative to conventional single-phase coolants in indirect refrigeration systems. In this paper, an experimental analysis of an offset strip-fin heat exchanger operating with ice slurry as working fluid is presented. The pressure drop and thermal performance have been determined. In order to obtain the partial thermal resistance in the ice slurry side an empirical correlation for the secondary fluid side was determined by applying the Wilson plot method in a set of tests performed previously. An empirical correlation in terms of the Colburn j-factor to describe the thermal behavior of the heat exchanger with ice slurry was obtained. On the other hand, the direct pressure drop measurements operating with different flow rates and ice fractions are shown and compared with values obtained with single-phase fluids. Pressure drop instabilities have been observed for flow rates lower than the nominal value provided by the manufacturer.     

Evaporation heat transfer and pressure drop of ammonia in a mixed configuration chevron plate heat exchanger

Ammonia is a naturally occurring environment friendly refrigerant with attractive thermo-physical properties. Experimental investigation of heat transfer and pressure drop during steady state evaporation of ammonia in a commercial plate heat exchanger has been carried out for an un-symmetric 30°/60° chevron plate configuration. Experiments were conducted for saturation temperatures ranging from −25 °C to −2 °C. The heat flux was varied between 21 kW m⁻² and 44 kW m⁻². Experimental results show significant effect of saturation temperature, heat flux and exit vapor quality on heat transfer coefficient and pressure drop. Current mixed plate configuration data are compared with previous studies on the same heat exchanger with symmetric plate configurations. This comparison highlighted importance of optimization in selection of the heat exchangers. Correlations for two phase Nusselt number and friction factor for each chevron plate configuration considered are developed. A Nusselt number correlation generalized for a range of chevron angles is also proposed.     

Thermal modeling of gas engine driven air to water heat pump systems in heating mode using genetic algorithm and Artificial Neural Network methods

The gas-engine driven air-to-water heat pump, type air conditioning system, is composed of two major thermodynamic cycles (including the vapor compression refrigeration cycle and the internal combustion gas engine cycle) as well as a refrigerant-water plate heat exchanger. The thermal modeling of gas engine driven air-to-water heat pump system with engine heat recovery heat exchangers was performed here for the heating mode of operation (in which it was required to model engine heat recovery heat exchanger). The modeling was performed using typical thermodynamic characteristics of system components, Artificial Neural Network and the multi-objective genetic algorithm optimization method. The comparison of modeling results with experimental ones showed average differences of 5.08%, 5.93%, 5.21%, 2.88% and 6.2% which shows acceptable agreement for operating pressure, gas engine fuel consumption, outlet water temperature, engine rotational speed, and system primary energy ratio.     

Experimental and numerical study of the compact heat exchanger with different microchannel shapes

Experimental and numerical analysis of heat transfer and fluid flow in the compact heat exchanger has been done in this paper. In an open circuit wind tunnel, developed on purpose for this investigation, the measurement of working media temperatures and mass flow rates for heat exchanger with microchannel coil has been accomplished. In accordance with the heat exchangers used for experiments, numerical 3D simulation of adequate geometry shapes has been done. With utilization of air/water side numerical simulation, more detailed results have been achieved in relation to the simulation that assumes constant temperature or constant heat flux on the pipe wall. Good agreement between experimentally measured and numerically calculated results has been accomplished. The influence of different microchannel shapes on heat transfer effectiveness and pressure drop has been studied numerically. Comparison of results has been made accompanied by the discussion and final conclusions.     

Experimental investigation of the effects of airflow nonuniformity on performance of a fin-and-tube heat exchanger

The effects of airflow nonuniformity on the thermal–hydraulic performance of a fin-and-tube heat exchanger were investigated experimentally. The test subject was a four-depth-row fin-and-tube heat exchanger with face split tube circuitry. Nonuniform inlet air distribution was generated by partially blocking the heat exchanger entrance cross-section. It was found that airflow nonuniformity causes thermal effectiveness deterioration and pressure drop increase. The size of effectiveness deterioration and pressure drop increase depend on the degree of airflow nonuniformity as well as on the orientation between airflow nonuniformity and tube-side fluid circuitry. For most of the observed nonuniform airflow profiles, which had low or moderate degrees of airflow nonuniformity, the effectiveness deterioration was between 5% and 10%, while the pressure drop increase was between 10% and 20%. For severely nonuniform airflow profiles the effectiveness deterioration was up to 30% and the pressure drop increase was up to 90%.     

空气冷却器空气侧百叶窗翅片强化传热性能研究

对跨临界CO2空调系统中空气冷却器空气侧的百叶窗翅片建立流固耦合的三维模型并进行数值模拟,结果表明传热和阻力特性与实验关联式吻合较好;开发新型弧形百叶窗翅片,并对不同窗翅角度和弧度的弧形百叶窗翅片进行数值分析,发现新型弧形百叶窗翅片的换热特性与压降特性较一般的百叶窗翅片都有增加,平均表面传热系数增加幅度高达9．47％,平均压降增加最大幅度为3．2％,可见新型弧形百叶窗翅片传热元件具有良好的综合传热性能。     

平翅片传热与流动特性的数值模拟

利用计算流体力学软件Fluent研究翅片管换热器的换热和压降特性。使用流固耦合准确确定翅片及管内外侧的传热边界条件，并利用场协同理论进行分析。将计算出的结果与试验结果进行比较。结果表明，数值模拟与实验结果吻合较好，数值计算可为换热器的结构优化和产品的研究开发提供依据。     

扁平铜管翅片管冷凝器性能试验

对一种扁平铜管百叶窗翅片管换热器（FTHX）进行单体冷凝性能和整机制冷性能试验,并与现行铜圆管翅片管换热器（CTHX）在相同工况下进行对比。试验结果表明：FTHX具有风阻低、制冷剂流阻高和系统制冷剂充注量少的特性;FTHX综合冷凝性能高于φ7mm铜管换热器但略低于φ9.52mm铜管换热器;FTHX整机制冷能力和能效比均略低于单排φ9.52mm铜管换热器。     

Experimental investigation and analysis of composite silica-gel coated fin-tube heat exchangers

Desiccant coated heat exchanger provides a promising option for desiccant cooling system, since it can handle sensible load and latent load simultaneously within one component. It is fabricated by coating desiccant material on the surface of conventional fin-tube heat exchanger. In order to enhance the performance of conventional silica gel coated heat exchanger (SGCHE), a novel composite silica gel coated heat exchanger (CCHE) is proposed and fabricated. An experimental setup is built to test and compare the dynamic performance of SGCHE and CCHE. Influences of main operation parameters including water temperatures and inlet air conditions on system performance are analyzed in terms of average dehumidification capacity (D_avg) and thermal coefficient of performance (COP_th). Optimization of cycle switch modes is also discussed. Experimental results show that CCHE has better dehumidification performance compared with SGCHE. In addition, pre-cooling before dehumidification process is found to be advantageous to both D_avg and COP_th.     

Ammonia evaporation in a mixed configuration chevron plate heat exchanger with and without miscible oil

An experimental study was conducted to determine the effects of miscible lubricant oil on evaporation of ammonia in a vertical chevron plate heat exchanger. The heat exchanger was configured in a U-type counter flow arrangement with mixed (30°/60°) chevron plate configuration. Experiments were carried out for four saturation temperatures ranging from −25 °C to −2 °C for a fixed ammonia mass flux rate of 6.5 kg m⁻² s⁻¹ and over a range of heat flux levels resulting in a vapor quality at the heat exchanger exit ranging between 0.5 and 0.9. For a given saturation temperature, experiments were performed for 0%, 3%, 6% and 9% oil concentrations, by volume in ammonia. The oil concentration, exit vapor quality, heat flux and saturation temperature were found to have significant effects on the heat transfer coefficient and pressure drop of ammonia. Based on the experimental data, correlations to estimate two phase Nusselt number and friction factor, generalized for the whole range of oil concentration have been presented.     

Air-side performance of brazed aluminum heat exchangers under dehumidifying conditions

An experimental study for air-side thermal-hydraulic performance of brazed aluminum heat exchangers under dehumidifying conditions has been performed. For 30 samples of louvered fin heat exchangers with different geometrical parameters, the heat transfer and pressure drop characteristics for wet surface were evaluated. The test was conducted for air-side Reynolds number in the range of 80–300 and tube-side water flow rate of 320 kg/h. The dry- and wet-bulb temperatures of the inlet air for heat exchangers were 27 and 19 °C, respectively and the inlet water temperature was 6 °C. The air-side thermal performance data for cooling and dehumidifying conditions were analyzed using effectiveness-NTU method for cross-flow heat exchanger with both fluids unmixed. The test results are reported, compared with those for the dry surface heat exchangers, in terms of sensible j factor and friction factor f, as functions of Reynolds number based on louver pitch. The correlations for j and f factors are developed within rms errors of ±16.9 and ±13.6%, respectively.     

翅片管换热器在析湿工况下的积灰特性及对空气侧压降的影响

空调器室内机多数采用翅片管换热器,会因制冷运行过程中表面析湿而粘附灰尘,导致空气流动阻力增大。本文选用空调器中常用的平直翅片、波纹翅片和开窗翅片作为测试样件,翅片间距范围为1.5～2.2 mm,研究了翅片管换热器在析湿工况下的积灰特性及积灰对空气侧压降的影响。结果表明:翅片表面的析湿量决定积灰程度,析湿液滴分布越密集、液桥数量越多,翅片迎风面的堵塞程度越严重且空气侧压降越大。在相同析湿工况下,具有复杂结构的开窗翅片和小翅片间距更容易积灰并增大空气侧压降,因此降低翅片结构复杂程度并适当增大翅片间距有利于空调器的防尘。在积灰过程中,随着换热器表面粉尘沉积量增加,空气侧压降先增大后保持稳定。     

Effect of inlet humidity condition on the air-side performance of an inclined brazed aluminum evaporator

The effect of air inlet humidity condition on the air-side heat transfer and pressure drop characteristics for an inclined brazed aluminum heat exchanger has been investigated experimentally. For a heat exchanger with a louver angle of 27°, fin pitch of 2.1 mm and flow depth of 27.9 mm, a series of tests are conducted for the air-side Reynolds numbers of 80–400, with variation of inlet humidity condition. The heat transfer data are obtained for wet condition only and the pressure drop data are measured for both dry and wet conditions. The inlet air temperature and relative humidity range are 12 °C and 60–90%, respectively. The inclination angles (θ) from the vertical position are 0, 14, 45, and 67° clockwise (leeward direction). The inclination angles affect moderately the sensible heat transfer coefficient for wet condition, and the pressure drops for both dry and wet conditions increase systematically with the inclination angle. The heat transfer and pressure drop characteristics under wet condition are not influenced substantially by the air inlet humidity for θ 45°. The effect of the louver directions at the inlet and outlet of the inclined heat exchanger on the performance is also addressed.     

Effect of fin spacing on the heat transfer and pressure drop of a two-row plate fin and tube heat exchanger

The analogy between heat and mass transfer (using the naphthalene sublimation technique to measure the mass transfer coefficient) was used to investigate the heat transfer capabilities of various two-row plate fin and tube heat exchanger configurations. Average transfer coefficients were determined from measurements of the mass transferred in an analogical system consisting of a pair of naphthalene plates and an array of spacer discs. The analogical system modelled a typical heat exchanger flow passage. Special attention was given to the effect of fin spacing on heat transfer capabilities. A physical interpretation of the experimental data has been given and new conclusions have been drawn. The pressure drop of the heat exchanger configurations has also been investigated.     

An experimental investigation of heat transfer and friction losses of interrupted and wavy fins for fin-and-tube heat exchangers

The present paper discusses the results of an extensive investigation about the performance of various fin configurations, carried out in the Luve Contardo experimental facilities and aimed to enhance the heat transfer capabilities of air-cooled condensers and liquid coolers. Test results here discussed are relative to 15 coil prototypes, having the same tube and fin geometry (25×21.65 mm staggered 5/8” tube banks, 2 mm fin spacing) but different fin surface geometry, from flat to wavy to louvered to “winglet”. Different rates of heat transfer and pressure loss enhancement were obtained, also depending on the quality of the pressing process. General approaches to evaluate the “goodness” of one fin design with respect to another one provided questionable results: pressure loss influence on the air flow cannot be properly evaluated unless the actual fan head curve and the coil dimensions (front area and rows number) are stipulated. The performance of air-cooled condensers was therefore predicted and compared, for various fin design and for coil arrangements of practical interest. The type of fin adopted strongly influences the heat exchanger performance and louvered fins generally provide the best results.     

Regenerated air cycle potentials in heat pump applications

Air (reversed Brayton) cycle has been utilized in the area of refrigeration and cryogenics for several decades, but its potentials in heat pump applications were longtime underestimated. In this paper, a thermodynamic model for the regenerated air heat pump cycle with practical compressor, expander and regenerated heat exchanger was developed. Based on the model, the relations between the system performance and the operating parameters were analyzed. The optimal heating COP (coefficient of performance) and the corresponding pressure ratio were derived. Then, air heat pump cycles (regenerated cycle and basic cycle) and vapor-compression heat pump cycles (CO₂ trans-critical cycle and R410A subcritical cycle) were numerically compared. The results indicated that the regenerated air heat pump cycle not only gets the heating capacity in line with the heating load under different operating conditions but also achieves higher COP over trans-critical CO₂ heat pump cycle in applications of large temperature difference.     

HFC32, a low GWP substitute for HFC410A in medium size chillers and heat pumps

This paper presents the experimental heat transfer coefficients and pressure drops measured during refrigerant HFC32 condensation inside a commercial Brazed Plate Heat Exchanger (BPHE) and compares this data with similar measurements previously obtained for refrigerant HFC410A to assess its capability as low GWP substitute for HFC410A in medium size chillers and heat pumps. The effects of saturation temperature, refrigerant mass flux, and vapour super-heating are investigated. HFC32 exhibits heat transfer coefficients much higher and frictional pressure drop slightly higher than those of HFC410A. Therefore, considering that HFC32 exhibits a GWP just one-third that of HFC410A, taking into account also its good thermodynamic properties, it seems to be a very promising low GWP substitute for HFC410A in medium size chillers and heat pumps.     

开缝翅片管换热器表面积尘与压降特性的实验研究

翅片管换热器表面沉积的粉尘会导致换热器压降增加。本文搭建了换热器积灰可视化实验台,选取开缝翅片管换热器为测试样件,在风速范围为1.0~2.3 m/s,喷粉浓度范围为2.1~10.8 g/m~3的条件下进行实验,研究了换热器表面的粉尘沉积特性及空气侧压降变化。结果表明:粉尘主要沉积在翅片迎风面的前缘开缝处以及换热管的迎风面上;高风速有利于粉尘沉积并增大积灰前后压降增幅,在风速变化范围内,粉尘沉积量最多增加98.4%,积灰前后压降增幅最多增加93.8%;提高喷粉浓度有利于粉尘沉积并增大积灰前后的压降增幅;在喷粉浓度变化范围内,粉尘沉积量最多增加22.8%,积灰前后压降增幅最多增加28.6%;在积灰过程中,空气侧压降比粉尘沉积量更快达到稳定状态。     

Effect of the header pressure drop induced flow maldistribution on the microchannel evaporator performance

This paper presents an experimental and numerical investigation of the flow maldistribution caused by the pressure drop in headers and its impact on the performance of a microchannel evaporator with horizontal headers and vertically oriented tubes. Experimental results show that the flash gas bypass method almost eliminates the quality induced maldistribution. However, refrigerant flow maldistribution caused by the header pressure drop still exists. This is mainly because the pressure drop along the headers results in uneven pressure difference and therefore non-uniform liquid refrigerant mass flow rate across each microchannel tube. A microchannel evaporator model validated by experimental results is employed to quantify header pressure drop induced flow maldistribution. Parametric analysis reveals that such maldistribution impact is significantly reduced by enlarging the outlet header size, increasing heat exchanger aspect ratio, or reducing the microchannel size while other parameters are kept constant. When ratio of outlet header to the total evaporator pressure drop is less than 30%, the cooling capacity reduction is limited below 3%.     

Experimental study on the heat transfer and flow characteristics of nanorefrigerants inside a corrugated tube

The heat transfer and flow characteristics of MWCNT-R141b nanorefrigerant with different mass fractions have been studied through experiments. Experimental results were compared with existing correlations. A two-step method was used to prepare the nanorefrigerants. Span-80 was used as surfactant with an average particle diameter of 20 nm. Transmittance method was used to evaluate the stability of nanorefrigerants. Results showed that the stability of MWCNT-R141b nanorefrigerant, which is the added dispersant, was good during the experiments. The 0.3 wt% MWCNT-R141b nanorefrigerants had optimal heat transfer enhancement effects compared with pure refrigerants. The maximum Nusselt number increased by 40%. The specific pressure drop of nanorefrigerant increased as the Reynolds number (Re) increased, and the specific pressure drop of the pure refrigerant was minimum, which is similar to R141b.