hiTRAN® Wire Matrix Inserts in Fouling Applications

Fouling characteristics are dictated largely by the properties of the thermal and hydrodynamic boundary layers. As a result, fouling mitigation strategies must take into account the conditions in this region. hiTRAN wire matrix tube inserts are a useful tool in altering the conditions near the tube wall, especially in the laminar and transition flow regions. This review article considers particle image velocimetry and laser doppler velocimetry measurements, which were employed in order to show the hydrodynamic differences between plain tubes and those containing inserts. Measurements indicate that the wall shear rate in tubes containing hiTRAN inserts operating in the laminar flow regime is similar to that for plain bore tubes operating in the turbulent flow regime. Moreover, the increased tube-side heat transfer coefficient that results from the reduction of the thermal boundary layer allows operation with smaller Effective Mean Temperature Differences (EMTDs). This enables the designer to reduce the tube wall temperature to a level below the fouling threshold temperature, e.g., to combat crude oil fouling. The results from the laser analyses into the hydrodynamic boundary layer are backed up by recent research data investigating the effect of hiTRAN inserts on sedimentation and particulate fouling. The thickness of the fouling layer was measured by applying a combination of photographic and laser measurement techniques. The results are compared to plain tube data and are reported as a function of both flow rate and hiTRAN insert packing density. The impact of altering the hydrodynamic and thermal conditions near to the wall is subsequently demonstrated for different fouling mechanisms. Studies of the impact of hiTRAN inserts on biological and chemical reaction fouling in crude oil processing are also reviewed. A better understanding of the threshold shear rates and wall temperatures for different fouling mechanisms is required for any study into the impact of fouling. Combining this knowledge with the principles outlined in this article clearly emphasizes the benefit of using hiTRAN wire matrix inserts as a powerful tool to mitigate fouling.     

Fouling thresholds in bare tubes and tubes fitted with inserts

Maya crude oil fouling reveals a straightforward dependency of initial fouling rate on surface temperature but a rather complex dependency on velocity in bare tubes, the initial fouling rate showing a maximum and then decreasing significantly towards zero as the velocity is increased. Surface shear stress clearly is an important parameter. CFD simulation of fluid flow in a tube fitted with a hiTRAN® insert reveals a complex distribution of surface shear stress. To compare the insert situation with the bare tube, an equivalent velocity concept is introduced on the basis that at a given average velocity the fluid flow results in the same average wall shear stress regardless of whether the tube is bare or is fitted with an insert. Using the equivalent velocity concept, the fouling data obtained using both a bare tube and a tube fitted with inserts can be correlated using a single model. Moreover, the fouling threshold conditions below which fouling is negligible, can be predicted for both situations.     

换热表面结垢对U型管蒸汽发生器传热性能的影响分析

U型管蒸汽发生器的壳侧沉积了来自二回路系统中的腐蚀产物,结垢导致热量聚积在金属换热管上,容易造成垢下热点腐蚀,危害设备安全。为了明确结垢对蒸汽发生器传热性能的影响,本研究基于仿真平台APROS建立了U型管蒸汽发生器的分布式模型,并根据已公开论文中的数据进行了模型准确性验证;推导了污垢热阻与表面换热系数之间的关系式,分析了不同结垢厚度、位置对U型管蒸汽发生器换热区域的传热管壁面温度、流体温度、传热系数、热流密度等的影响程度。研究结果表明：随着结垢程度的加剧,蒸汽发生器的换热效率不断降低,出口蒸汽品质不断下降;结垢对沸腾段换热效率的影响比对过冷段换热效率的影响更大。     

CFD modeling of heat transfer of CO2 at supercritical pressures flowing vertically in porous tubes

Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) tool has been used for investigation of convective heat transfer of CO₂ in two porous tubes. Effects of some important parameters such as pressure, inlet temperature, mass flow rate, wall heat flux and porosity on temperature distribution and local heat transfer coefficients have been studied numerically. Near the supercritical conditions, these parameters are very effective on temperature gradient and local heat transfer coefficients. For example at p = 9.5 MPa, under the same conditions, the heat transfer coefficient in a tube with particle diameters of 0.1–0.12 mm is about 20–30% higher than when the particle diameter of 0.2–0.28 mm were used. The heat transfer coefficient increases with decreasing pressure and increasing mass flow rate. Also the porosity of the bed has the important role on the heat transfer. The CFD predictions have been compared to the experimental data and showed pretty good agreement.     

3D numerical and experimental analysis for thermal–hydraulic characteristics of air flow inside a circular tube with different tube inserts

Numerical and experimental analyses were carried out to study thermal–hydraulic characteristics of air flow inside a circular tube with different tube inserts. Three kinds of tube inserts, including longitudinal strip inserts (both with and without holes) and twisted-tape inserts with three different twisted angles (α = 15.3°, 24.4° and 34.3°) have been investigated for different inlet frontal velocity ranging from 3 to 18 m/s. Numerical simulation was performed by a 3D turbulence analysis of the heat transfer and fluid flow. Conjugate convective heat transfer in the flow field and heat conduction in the tube inserts are considered also. The experiments were conducted in a shell and tube exchanger with overall counterflow arrangement. The working fluid in the tube side was cold air, while the hot Dowtherm fluid was on the shell side. To obtain the heat transfer characteristics of the test section from the experimental data, the ε-NTU (effectiveness-number of transfer unit) method is applied to determine the overall conductance (UA product) in the analysis.It was found that the heat transfer coefficient and the pressure drop in the tubes with the longitudinal strip inserts (without hole) were 7–16% and 100–170% greater than those of plain tubes without inserts. When the longitudinal strip inserts with holes were used, the heat transfer coefficient and the pressure drop were 13–28% and 140–220%, respectively, higher than those of plain tubes. The heat transfer coefficient and the pressure drop of the tubes with twisted-tape inserts were 13–61% and 150–370%, respectively, higher than those of plain tubes. Furthermore, it was found that the reduction ratio in the heat transfer area of the tube of approximately 18–28% may be obtained if the twisted-tape tube inserts are used.     

Study of the Effect of Fin-and-Tube Heat Exchanger Fouling on its Structural Performance

This paper presents the thermal and structural analysis of high temperature fin-and-tube heat exchanger. Water flowing in tubular space and flue-gas flowing in the intertubular space, were considered as working fluids. The effect of limescale fouling on thermal and structural performance of heat exchanger was studied. The analysis considered an industrial heat exchanger, which failure occur from time to time. The expert inspection, after the failure indicated the existence of fouling layer within the heat exchanger tubes. In order to understand the reasons of heat exchanger failure, a detailed fluid flow analysis (both in the tubular and intertubular spaces) was performed. The analysis indicated that the silicate limescale fouling layer with thermal conductivity of 0.35 W/(mK) and thickness up to 1.5 mm existing in the tube, may increase the tube wall temperature even more than 150°C. The study also includes the impact of outer tube wall surface fouling with thickness of 0.2 mm and heat transfer coefficient of 2 W/(mK). As a result, the compressible stresses may increase over three times compared to the situation where the tube wall fouling does not exist.     

Numerical investigation of fouling on cross-flow heat exchanger tubes with conjugated heat transfer approach

Although fouling on heat exchanger tubes is extensively investigated, due to the lack of energy resources, the effects of fouling on heat exchangers is still an important area of study and gaining more and more attention every day. In this study we investigated the effects of fouling on heat transfer and flow structures numerically for cross-flow heat exchanger tube geometry. The distributions of temperature, heat transfer coefficient and heat flux at the surface of fouling were obtained for single and double layer fouling cases. In the analysis, Reynolds number and the blockage ratio were fixed to 100 and 0.1 respectively. We used ANSYS software in our analyses and compared some of our results with the literature.     

螺旋管内水和蒸汽局部传热特性研究

以高温气冷堆蒸发器为背景,采用FLUENT软件模拟了单相水和蒸汽在不同尺寸螺旋管内部的流动和传热过程,研究了壁面局部传热特性。计算结果表明,远离螺旋中心线一侧局部传热较强而靠近螺旋中心线一侧传热较弱,壁面Nu周向分布非常不均匀。管径与螺旋直径之比是主要影响因素,当其值增大时截面温度极值点向螺旋中心线外侧移动,加剧了温度分布和Nu分布的不均匀性。在层流向湍流过渡区内,Re的增大使截面各点温度梯度均有所增加,同时也增大了Nu周向分布的不均匀程度,但在旺盛湍流区内Re对Nu分布无明显影响。壁面热边界条件形式对局部Nu周向分布没有显著影响。给出了局部Nu的估算式。     

Characterization of Crude Oils and Their Fouling Deposits Using a Batch Stirred Cell System

A small (1 L) batch stirred cell system has been developed to study crude oil fouling at surface temperatures up to 400°C and pressures up to 30 bar. Fouling resistance–time data are obtained from experiments in which the principal operating variables are surface shear stress, surface temperature, heat flux, and crude oil type. The oils and deposits are characterized and correlated with the experimental heat transfer fouling data to understand better the effects of process conditions such as surface temperature and surface shear stress on the fouling process. Deposits are subjected to a range of qualitative and quantitative analyses in order to gain a better insight into the crude oil fouling phenomenon. Thermal data that can be obtained relatively quickly from the batch cell provide fouling rates, Arrhenius plots, and apparent activation energies as a function of process variables. The experimental system, supported by computational fluid dynamics (CFD) studies, allows fouling threshold conditions of surface temperature and shear stress to be identified relatively quickly in the laboratory. The data also contribute to existing knowledge about the compensation plot.     

Fouling in a Steam Cracker Convection Section Part 1: A Hybrid CFD-1D Model to Obtain Accurate Tube Wall Temperature Profiles

Abstract

To study fouling in steam cracker convection section tubes, accurate tube wall temperature profiles are needed. In this work, tube wall temperature profiles are calculated using a hybrid model, combining a one-dimensional (1D) process gas side model and a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) flue gas side model. The CFD flue gas side model assures the flue gas side accuracy, accounting for local temperatures, while the 1D process gas side model limits the computational cost. Flow separation in the flue gas side at the upper circumference of each tube suggests the need for a compartmentalized 1D approach. A considerable effect is observed. The hybrid CFD-1D model provides accurate tube wall temperature profiles in a reasonable simulation time, a first step towards simulation-based design of more efficient steam cracker convection sections.     

Investigating the Impact of Boiling Conditions on the Fouling of a Crude Oil

ABSTRACT

The impacts of nucleate boiling and pressure on crude oil fouling are factors that have not been heavily investigated in previous research. Variables such as wall temperature and fluid velocity/shear are often a main focus, as they are key variables for predictive fouling models, which provide insight to fouling thresholds. Research detailed in this report shows that nucleate boiling and pressure greatly impact the measured fouling rate of a crude oil tested using the Heat Transfer Research, Inc., rotating fouling unit. When nucleate boiling is occurring, the use of fouling resistance plots to measure fouling rates is not a reliable method due to the impact boiling has on the heat transfer coefficient. Visual inspection of fouling deposits to validate fouling resistance data has also been found to be critical. Images of fouling deposits are included. Fouling under nonboiling conditions was shown to increase with increasing pressure.     

Transient convective heat transfer to water near the critical region in a vertical tube

Numerical analysis has been carried out to investigate transient forced convective heat transfer to water near the critical region in developing flow through a vertical tube. With large variations of thermophysical properties such as density, specific heat, viscosity, and thermal conductivity near the thermodynamic critical point, heat transfer in the tube is strongly coupled with fluid flow. Buoyancy force parameter has also large variation with fluid temperature and pressure in the tube. Time dependent characteristics of fluid velocity, temperature, and heat transfer coefficient with water properties are presented and analyzed. Transient Nusselt and Stanton number distributions along the tube are also compared for various pressures in the tube. Because of heat transfer from the wall transition behavior from liquid-like phase to gas-like phase of heat transfer coefficient occurs when the fluid passes through pseudocritical temperature region in the tube. Turbulent viscosity ratio also has steep variation near the pseudocritical temperature close to the wall.     

An experimental investigation on heat transfer characteristics of multi-walled CNT-heat transfer oil nanofluid flow inside flattened tubes under uniform wall temperature condition

An experimental investigation on heat transfer characteristics of MWCNT-heat transfer oil nanofluid flow inside horizontal flattened tubes has been carried out under uniform wall temperature condition. Nanoparticle weight fractions were 0%, 0.1%, 0.2%, and 0.4%. The copper tubes of 14.5 mm I.D. were flattened and used as the test section of oblong shape with inside heights of 13.4 mm, 11.7 mm, 10.6 mm, and 8.6 mm. The nanofluid flowing inside the tube was heated inside a steam chamber to keep the temperature of the tube wall constant. The required data were acquired for laminar hydrodynamically fully developed regime. The effects of different parameters such as volumetric flow rate, nanoparticle weight fraction, and hydraulic diameter on the heat transfer behavior of the tested systems have been investigated experimentally. For a given flattened tube at a constant nanoparticle weight fraction, increasing volumetric flow rate results in heat transfer enhancement. In addition, as the tube profile becomes more flattened and the hydraulic diameter decreases, the heat transfer coefficient goes up at constant volumetric flow rate. Utilizing nanofluids instead of the base fluid, the heat transfer rate enhances remarkably. The higher the nanoparticles weight fraction, the more the rate of heat transfer enhancement. Finally, the results show that the amount of increase in heat transfer coefficient caused by employing nanofluid instead of the base fluid is comparable to what caused by flattening the tube.     

“Zero Fouling” Self-Cleaning Heat Exchanger

Conventional shell and tube heat exchangers sometimes have to use two severely fouling process streams, one in the tubes and one in the shell. This paper presents the design of a self-cleaning heat exchanger that applies the self-cleaning mechanism in the tubes of two parallel bundles handling the fouling process streams. For the transfer of heat between both bundles, a small circulating flow of conditioned water is used as an intermediate fluid, a fraction of which evaporates on the outside of the tubes of the high-temperature bundle and condenses on the outside of the tubes of the low-temperature bundle. This novel design, which consists of two parallel bundles in one shell, experiences very high film coefficients at the outside surface of both tube bundles and does not suffer from any fouling. Therefore, it is referred to as a “zero fouling” self-cleaning heat exchanger. In this paper, a conventional severely fouling crude oil preheater will be compared with a zero fouling self-cleaning heat exchanger for the same service.     

Numerical investigation on the single phase forced convection heat transfer characteristics of TiO2 nanofluids in a double-tube counter flow heat exchanger

In this study, forced convection flows of nanofluids consisting of water with TiO₂ and Al₂O₃ nanoparticles in a horizontal tube with constant wall temperature are investigated numerically. The horizontal test section is modeled and solved using a CFD program. Palm et al.'s correlations are used to determine the nanofluid properties. A single-phase model having two-dimensional equations is employed with either constant or temperature dependent properties to study the hydrodynamics and thermal behaviors of the nanofluid flow. The numerical investigation is performed for a constant particle size of Al₂O₃ as a case study after the validation of its model by means of the experimental data of Duangthongsuk and Wongwises with TiO₂ nanoparticles. The velocity and temperature vectors are presented in the entrance and fully developed region. The variations of the fluid temperature, local heat transfer coefficient and pressure drop along tube length are shown in the paper. Effects of nanoparticles concentration and Reynolds number on the wall shear stress, Nusselt number, heat transfer coefficient and pressure drop are presented. Numerical results show the heat transfer enhancement due to presence of the nanoparticles in the fluid in accordance with the results of the experimental study used for the validation process of the numerical model.     

Asymmetrical Non-Uniform Heat Flux Distributions For Laminar Flow Heat Transfer With Mixed Convection In a Horizontal Circular Tube

Non-symmetric heat flux distributions in terms of gravity in solar collector tubes influence buoyancy-driven secondary flow which has an impact on the associated heat transfer and pressure drop performance. In this study the influence of the asymmetry angle (0°, 20°, 30° and 40°) with regard to gravity for non-uniform heat flux boundaries in a horizontal circular tube was investigated numerically. A stainless steel tube with an inner diameter of 62.68 mm, a wall thickness of 5.16 mm, and a length of 10 m was considered for water inlet temperatures ranging from 290 K to 360 K and inlet Reynolds numbers ranging from 130 to 2000. Conjugate heat transfer was modelled for different sinusoidal type outer surface heat flux distributions with a base-level incident heat flux intensity of 7.1 kW/m². It was found that average internal heat transfer coefficients increased with the circumferential span of the heat flux distribution. Average internal and axial local heat transfer coefficients and overall friction factors were at their highest for symmetrical heat flux cases (gravity at 0º) and lower for asymmetric cases. The internal heat transfer coefficients also increased with the inlet fluid temperature and decreased with an increase in the external heat loss transfer coefficient. Friction factors decreased with an increase in fluid inlet temperature or an increase in the external heat loss transfer coefficients of the tube model.     

基于CFD的活塞振荡冷却的流动与传热仿真研究

由于柴油机热负荷不断提高,必须要对活塞进行有效冷却。应用计算流体动力学(CFD)方法对活塞的振荡冷却瞬态传热进行了仿真分析,得到了不同转速下冷却油腔的机油填充率以及壁面换热系数等随曲轴转角的变化规律。研究结果表明,随着发动机转速的提高,冷却油腔内的机油填充率下降,但是壁面换热系数却有所提高;机油的振荡冲击对冷却油腔顶部和底部的强化换热明显高于侧壁。此结果可为活塞有限元分析提供热边界条件,在活塞概念设计阶段为活塞的优化设计提供依据。     

Numerical investigation of heat transfer and pressure drop in enhanced tubes

This study investigates passive heat transfer enhancement techniques to determine the distribution of temperature and static pressure in test tubes, the friction factor, the heat flux, the temperature difference between the inlet and outlet fluid temperatures, the pressure drop penalty and the numerical convective heat transfer coefficient, and then compares the results to the experimental data of Zdaniuk et al. It predicts the single-phase friction factors for the smooth and enhanced tubes by means of the empirical correlations of Blasius and Zdaniuk et al. This study performed calculations on a smooth tube and two helically finned tubes with different geometric parameters also used in the analyses of Zdaniuk et al. It also performed calculations on two corrugated tubes in the simulation study. In Zdaniuk et al.'s experimental setup, the horizontal test section was a 2.74 m long countercurrent flow double tube heat exchanger with the fluid of water flowing in the inner copper tube (15.57–15.64 mm i.d.) and cooling water flowing in the annulus (31.75 mm i.d.). Their test runs were performed at a temperature around 20 °C for cold water flowing in the annulus while Reynolds numbers ranged from 12,000 to 57,000 for the water flowing in the inner tube. A single-phase numerical model having three-dimensional equations is employed with either constant or temperature dependent properties to study the hydrodynamics and thermal behaviors of the flow. The temperature contours are presented for inlet, outlet and fully developed regions of the tube. The variations of the fluid temperature and static pressure along tube length are shown in the paper. The results obtained from a numerical analysis for the helically tubes were validated by various friction factor correlations, such as those found by Blasius and Zdaniuk et al. Then, numerical results were obtained for the two corrugated tubes as a simulation study. The present study found that the average deviation is less than 5% for the friction factors obtained by the Fluent CFD program while Blasius's correlation has the average deviation of less than 10%. The corrugated tubes have a higher heat transfer coefficient than smooth tubes but a lower coefficient than helically finned tubes. The paper also investigates the pressure drop penalty for the heat transfer enhancement.     

Modeling and Prediction of Shell-Side Fouling in Shell-and-Tube Heat Exchangers

Fouling is a challenging, longstanding, and costly problem affecting a variety of heat transfer applications in industry. Mathematical models that aim at capturing and predicting fouling trends in shell-and-tube heat exchangers typically focus on fouling inside the tubes, while fouling on the shell side has generally been neglected. However, fouling deposition on the shell side may be significant in practice, impairing heat transfer, increasing pressure drops, and modifying flow paths. In this paper, a new model formulation is presented that enables capturing fouling on the shell side of shell-and-tube heat exchangers including the effect of occlusion of the shell-side clearances. It is demonstrated by means of an industrial case study in a crude oil refinery application. The model, implemented in an advanced simulation environment, is fitted to plant data. It is shown to capture the complex thermal and hydraulic interactions between fouling growth inside and outside of the tubes, the effect of fouling on the occlusion of the shell-side construction clearances, and to unveil the impact on shell-side flow patterns, heat transfer coefficient, pressure drops, and overall exchanger performance. The model is shown to predict the fouling behavior in a seamless dynamic simulation of both deposition and cleaning operations, with excellent results.     

气汽混合流体凝结液膜传热特性研究

液膜厚度对凝结传热具有较大影响,且传热管管型影响着凝结液膜形成及排除。为了通过改变管型降低液膜厚度达到强化传热的目的,对圆管、椭圆管及滴形管等三种管型凝结液膜建立了相应的物理及数学模型,并计算了液膜沿管壁的厚度分布及传热系数;分析了三种管型对液膜传热的影响。结果表明:在气汽混合流体凝结传热过程中,不同管型其凝结液膜厚度差别较大;壁面温度和混合流体速度对液膜传热均有影响;相同条件下滴形管管壁上所形成的液膜,其平均厚度较薄,传热系数较高,因此滴形管传热性能优于其他管型。