Measurement and prediction of evaporator shell-side pressure drop

The pressure drop across a heat exchanger is an important parameter, along with the heat transfer capacity. In fact, the operating cost throughout the life of the exchanger depends on the pressure losses. Therefore, it is important to be able to predict pressure drop accurately as it is to predict heat transfer.A new data set of shell-side pressure drop measurements taken during isothermal flow of brines in shell and tube evaporators was collected in the Alfa Laval laboratory. It covers several different configurations of industrial shell and tube evaporators and a wide range of operating conditions, with cross flow Reynolds number ranging from 170 to 33,000.The database is compared against two predictive procedures available in the literature for computing shell-side pressure drop, showing that no method is accurate enough for design purpose.As a further step, a new suggested procedure is presented, which extends the Wills and Johnston [Wills MJN, Johnston D. A new and accurate hand calculation method for shellside pressure drop and flow distribution. 22nd National Heat Transfer Conference, HTD N. 36. New York: ASME; 1984, p. 67–79] method to the low Reynolds number range and improve its capability to predict experimental data.     

The use of CFD to improve the performance of a chilled multi-deck retail display cabinet

Maintaining food temperatures below critical values is the key to maximising the high quality display life of chilled foods. Studies were carried out to see if computational fluid dynamic (CFD) modelling could be used to rapidly identify the changes that would be required to an existing multi-deck display cabinet so that it would meet a higher test specification. Implementing the changes on a Pastorfrigor MV 200TP display cabinet reduced the average power consumption from 1.37 to 1.29 kW as well as significantly reducing the number of test packs which spent any time above 4 °C, from 12 to 1.     

A novel experimental investigation of a solar cooling system in Madrid

This paper reports novel experimental results derived through field testing of a part load solar energized cooling system for typical Spanish houses in Madrid during the summer period of 2003. Solar hot water was delivered by means of a 49.9 m² array of flat-plate collectors to drive a single-effect (LiBr/H₂O) absorption chiller of 35 kW nominal cooling capacity. Thermal energy was stored in a 2 m³ stratified hot water storage tank during hours of bright sunshine. Chilled water produced at the evaporator was supplied to a row of fan coil units and the heat of condensation and absorption was rejected by means of a forced draft cooling tower. Instantaneous, daily and period energy flows and energy balance in the installation is presented. System and absorption machine temperature profiles are given for a clear, hot and dry day's operation. Daily and period system efficiencies are given. Peak insolation of 969 W m⁻² (at 12:30 solar time on 08/08/03) produced 5.13 kW of cooling at a solar to cooling conversion efficiency of 11%. Maximum cooling capacity was 7.5 kW. Cooling was provided for 8.67 h and the chiller required a threshold insolation of 711 W m⁻² for start-up and 373 W m⁻² for shut-down. A minimum hot water inlet temperature to the generator of 65 °C was required to commence cold generation, whereas at 81 °C, 6.4 kW of cooling (18.3% of nominal capacity) was produced. The absorption refrigeration machine operated within the generation and absorption temperature ranges of 57–67 and 32–36 °C, respectively. The measured maximum instantaneous, daily average and period average COP were 0.60 (at maximum capacity), 0.42 and 0.34, respectively. Energy flows in the system are represented on a novel area diagram. The results clearly demonstrate that the technology works best in dry and hot climatic conditions where large daily variations in relative humidity and dry bulb temperature prevail. This case study provides benchmark data for the assessment of other similar prototypes and for the validation of mathematical models.     

Description and experimental results of a semi-indirect ceramic evaporative cooler

Evaporative cooling is used in industrial and air conditioning processes to reduce temperature in different fluids. Direct evaporation systems can lead to environmental problems such as Legionnaire's disease, and indirect systems reduce system efficiency.This work presents the manufacture, test bed set up and trials carried out on a ceramic evaporative cooling system which acts as a semi-indirect cooler. Depending on air characteristics, it may act as a sensible or enthalpic exchanger. The water cooled in a cooling tower, using the return air coming from the conditioned room (22 °C and 50% comfort conditions) goes through the ceramic pipes, exchanging sensible and latent heat with a current of outdoor air.The use of this recovery system is mainly in climates with a high temperature and humidity such as tropical environments where the system yields a decrease in supply air humidity, using the cooling power of return air.The tests presented show the system behaviour for various supply air conditions.     

The performance of a transcritical CO2 cycle with an internal heat exchanger for hot water heating

The main purpose of this study is to investigate the performance of a transcritical CO₂ cycle with an internal heat exchanger for hot water heating. Performance test and simulation have been carried out for a transcritical CO₂ cycle by varying secondary heat transfer fluid temperatures at evaporator and gas-cooler inlets as well as the discharge pressure. Variations of mass flow rate of refrigerant, compressor power, heating capacity, and co-efficient of performance (COP) with respect to the length of an internal heat exchanger are presented at various operating conditions. Good quantitative agreement between model predictions and experimental results has been found; most parameters have absolute average deviations of less than 4%. As the length of the internal heat exchanger increases, COP is enhanced but heating capacity tends to decrease due to the trade-offs between the effectiveness and pressure drop in the internal heat exchanger.     

Modelling and simulation results for a domestic exhaust-air heat pump heating system

Energy consumption in residential buildings has gained an increasing interest the latest years due to the rising demand for efficient energy use and higher comfort standards. In tight building constructions with controlled ventilation, heat recovery with exhaust-air heat pump connected to floor heating is regarded as energy efficient heating system that optimises the energy use in buildings while maintaining an acceptable level of thermal comfort. In this study, we use the computational tools TRNSYS and EES to model and analyse the performance of a residential house, its ventilation system and its floor heating system based on an exhaust air heat pump. The system analysis focuses particularly on the influence of internal and solar gains on the operation of the heating system and the thermal comfort of the house. Furthermore, the way that gains influences the performance of the floor heating system is examined. Overall, the results bring to light the impact of factors that are not easy to predict on the indoor climate and the thermal comfort.     

Design considerations for refrigeration cycles

The Carnot COP, which assumes a thermodynamically ideal cycle in which no irreversibilities exist, is often considered to be a design goal for actual cycles. However, the Carnot COP does not consider heat transfer mechanisms. Heat transfer at a finite rate is necessarily an irreversible process and unavoidable in a refrigeration cycle. The lack of consideration of rate processes reduces the usefulness of the Carnot COP as a realistic design goal. In this paper, the limitations of both thermodynamics and heat transfer are considered to identify a more realistic design goal for the COP of refrigeration cycles. The consideration of heat transfer limitations leads to a design rule for the optimum distribution of heat exchange area between the low- and high-temperature heat exchangers.     

Changes in sheath properties of rainbow trout eggs during cold and frozen storage

Rainbow trout eggs (V/VI Maier scale maturity stage) stored at 2 and −25°C were studied for hardness, lipid components, peroxides and conjugated diene and triene groups. The egg resistance to crushing after seven days of cold storage decreased from 87.3 to 66.0 g. The concentrates of free fatty acids, peroxides, diene and triene groups showed no tendency to increase. Changes in sheath resistance to crushing during frozen storage were significant, the resistance dropping from 87.3 to 30.0 g after 12 months of storage at −25°C. The temperature of −25°C inhibited lipolytic enzymes. Egg lipids were not oxidized before the third month of storage. After four months of storage at −25°C (hardness 46.5 g), the eggs were salted to determine the extent of hardness changes under the influence of sodium chloride solution and thermal treatment. Egg sheath hardness assays showed salting to result in hardness increasing from 46.5 to 85.0 g. Pasteurization reduced egg hardness, but the extent of reduction was not proportional to the duration of thermal treatment. Hardness reduction (down to 50.0 g) in the rainbow trout eggs during frozen storage has no detrimental effects on the suitability of eggs for delicatessen product manufacture.     

Process design data for prok chilling

In 1993 legislation is being enacted throughout the European Community (EC) that will require the maximum temperature of pork carcasses to be below 7°C before cutting or transportation. Results from a survey of UK abattoirs are summarized to highlight the problems and inadequacies of current commercial chilling systems. Design data are presented for conventional pork-chilling systems, which detail the effects of air temperature, air velocity and carcass weight on chilling times. Four novel or modified chilling systems are discussed: ultra-rapid chilling with air at −30°C; immersion chilling in brine at 0°C; ice-bank chilling in humid air at 2°C; and spray chilling in two stages, at 10°C for 2 h followed by 4°C for 21 h. The potential of such systems for the acceleration of chilling rates and for substantial weight savings is identified.