Heat Transfer from Spiral Tubing in an Air-Fluidized Bed

Coefficients of heat transfer from a coiled Turbotec spiral tube to an air-fluidized bed were measured. Experimental parameters included particle diameter, number of flutes, flute pitch, groove depth, and air fluidizing velocity. Results indicated that the heat transfer coefficient generally increased with increasing fluidizing velocity. A maximum coefficient was observed in some cases. The heat transfer coefficient increased with decreasing particle size. The spiral tube with three flutes had the highest heat transfer coefficients. The spiral tube with four flutes and a pitch of 5.66 cm had gains in heat transfer duty as large as 40% compared to plain tubes. A correlation was formulated which fit the data within the range of experimental error.