Thermal-Hydraulic Characteristics of Microchannel Heat Exchanger and Its Application to Solar Gas Turbines

Author(s):  
Motoaki Utamura

Incorporating “integral method” proposed here, a set of empirical correlations of local heat transfer coefficient and pressure loss coefficient are newly derived based on experiments using microchannel heat exchanger (MCHE) with supercritical carbon dioxide as heating medium and water as coolant. They are expressed in dimensionless forms of polynomial of Reynolds number and Prandtl number. The same correlation of Nusselt number is found applicable to both fluids and its value is almost two times larger than Dittus Boelter correlation. It was also shown that the above form is applicable to a wide range of geometry with the values of constants changed. Accuracy of both correlations is confirmed within 5% errors for MCHE with S-shaped fins in the range of pressures 9∼12.5MPa and temperatures 280∼390K. Based on the correlations, sizes of heat exchangers are evaluated contained in gas turbine cycle with super critical carbon dioxide as a working fluid applicable to solar power.

Author(s):  
Motoaki Utamura ◽  
Yutaka Tamaura

Solar thermal power generation system equipped with molten salt thermal storage offers continuous operation at a rated power independent of the variation of insolation. A gas turbine cycle for solar applications is studied which works in a moderate temperature range (600–850K) where molten salt stays as liquid stably. It is found that a closed cycle with super-critical state of carbon dioxide as a working fluid is a promising candidate for solar application. The cycle featured in smaller compressor work would achieve high cycle efficiency if cycle configuration and operation conditions are chosen properly. The temperature effectiveness of a regenerative heat exchanger is shown to govern the efficiency. Under the condition of 98% temperature effectiveness, the regenerative cycle with pre- and inter-cooling provides cycle efficiency of as much as 47%. A novel heat exchanger design to realize such a high temperature effectiveness is also presented.


Author(s):  
R. S. Bunker ◽  
D. E. Metzger ◽  
S. Wittig

Results are presented from an experimental study designed to obtain detailed radial heat transfer coefficient distributions applicable to the cooling of disk-cavity regions of gas turbines. An experimental apparatus has been designed to obtain local heat transfer data on both the rotating and stationary surfaces of a parallel geometry disk-cavity system. The method employed utilizes thin thermochromic liquid crystal coatings together with video system data acquisition and computer-assisted image analysis to extract heat transfer information. The color display of the liquid crystal coatings is detected through the analysis of standard video chromanance signals. The experimental technique used is an aerodynamically steady but thermally transient one which provides consistent disk-cavity thermal boundary conditions while yet being inexpensive and highly versatile. A single circular jet is used to introduce fluid from the stator into the disk-cavity by impingement normal to the rotor surface. The present study investigates hub injection of coolant over a wide range of parameters including disk rotational Reynolds numbers of 2 to 5 · 105, rotor/stator spacing-to-disk radius ratios of .025 to .15, and jet mass flow rates between .10 and .40 times the turbulent pumped flow rate of a free disk. The results are presented as radial distributions of local Nusselt numbers. Rotor heat transfer exhibits regions of impingement and rotational domination with a transition region between, while stator heat transfer shows flow reattachment and convection regions with evidence of an inner recirculation zone. The local effects of rotation, spacing, and mass flow rate are all displayed. The significant magnitude of stator heat transfer in many cases indicates the importance of proper stator modeling to rotor and disk-cavity heat transfer results.


1992 ◽  
Vol 114 (1) ◽  
pp. 211-220 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. S. Bunker ◽  
D. E. Metzger ◽  
S. Wittig

Results are presented from an experimental study designed to obtain detailed radial heat transfer coefficient distributions applicable to the cooling of disk-cavity regions of gas turbines. An experimental apparatus has been designed to obtain local heat transfer data on both the rotating and stationary surfaces of a parallel geometry disk-cavity system. The method employed utilizes thin thermochromic liquid crystal coatings together with video system data acquisition and computer-assisted image analysis to extract heat transfer information. The color display of the liquid crystal coatings is detected through the analysis of standard video chromanance signals. The experimental technique used is an aerodynamically steady but thermally transient one, which provides consistent disk-cavity thermal boundary conditions yet is inexpensive and highly versatile. A single circular jet is used to introduce fluid from the stator into the disk cavity by impingement normal to the rotor surface. The present study investigates hub injection of coolant over a wide range of parameters including disk rotational Reynolds numbers of 2 to 5 × 105, rotor/stator spacing-to-disk radius ratios of 0.025 to 0.15, and jet mass flow rates between 0.10 and 0.40 times the turbulent pumped flow rate of a free disk. The results are presented as radial distributions of local Nusselt numbers. Rotor heat transfer exhibits regions of impingement and rotational domination with a transition region between, while stator heat transfer shows flow reattachment and convection regions with evidence of an inner recirculation zone. The local effects of rotation, spacing, and mass flow rate are all displayed. The significant magnitude of stator heat transfer in many cases indicates the importance of proper stator modeling to rotor and disk-cavity heat transfer results.


Author(s):  
Matthew Golob ◽  
Clayton Nguyen ◽  
Sheldon Jeter ◽  
Said Abdel-Khalik ◽  
Cliff Ho

Abstract Any proposed particle to working fluid heat exchanger as part of a CSP Particle Heating Receiver system is challenging. A principal challenge is achieving adequate heat exchange (HX) from the high temperature particles to the working fluid such as sCO2 or air flowing in tubes or other passages. To reduce the required HX area, a high particle side heat transfer coefficient is needed, and counterflow is always the best overall arrangement. Consequently, a promising approach is implementing an open channel flow of fluidized particles actually flowing in a general counterflow with respect to the working fluid, which is contained in tubes or passages immersed in the channel. This arrangement provides (1) excellent particle side heat transfer, (2) convenient particle re-circulation, and (3) almost ideal counterflow with the working fluid. To advance the understanding and support the design and applications of such exchangers, this investigation has been conducted to study the possibility of local effects of the particle flow path on the fluidized heat transfer. To this end, a series of smaller fluidized bed heat exchangers were built utilizing an axially flowing open channel for the moving bed of fluidized particles. These designs featured a serpentine flow path representative the full scale HX design proposed by others. The proposed serpentine flow design is based on an existing particle cooling system; however, questions were raised about this design that had not yet been conclusively answered and promoted this investigation. The test bath supporting this investigation contains one bend around which the particulate flows prior to exiting the heat exchanger. The intent of this larger scale apparatus is to observe the variables affecting the stability or uniformity of the particle flow and provide insight into potential problems with the operational unit. The test rig consists of two stacked sections. The lower container is the fluidizing air plenum, which provides a uniformly distributed airflow through the bottom plane of the upper container. The interface comprises a structural perforated plate, stacked layers of filter paper to balance the pressure drop, and a fine stainless steel wire mesh to ensure that the particulate remains in the upper container. This upper container represents the particulate flow area. Clear conductive PETG polymer walls were used for the fluidized bath to reduce electrostatic buildup while still providing a transparent material through which the flow can be observed. The current design uses an air conveyor to recirculate the particulate from one end of the test bath back to the other closing the particle loop. The tests described investigate the effectiveness of fluidization in specific regions of the serpentine path. Measurements have been taken in these regions to determine the local heat transfer coefficient. This is accomplished by inserting a cartridge heater with a known power input and heated area, instrumented with a fine bead surface thermocouple to measure the heater surface temperature. In addition, two probes are immersed in the fluidized bed surrounding the cartridge heater to measure the free stream temperature in the bed. The air input for fluidization and air conveyor lift are also measured and recorded as test parameters along with approximate bed height in each region. In addition to the quantitative measurements of the flow, the test unit is used to observe the effect of fluidization, bed height, and outlet locations on the axial mass flow rate of the particulate. These results will be presented in the proposed paper. Going forward, this setup will allow for testing of various mass flow control schemes for the system. Currently this design, with the instrumented heater and free stream temperature probes, allows measurement of the local heat transfer properties anywhere in the particle flow path. The present tests provide a localized map of heat transfer coefficients in the fluidized bath design and a description of the flow behavior which will be reported and presented to support future open channel particle to sCO2 heat exchanger designs.


1989 ◽  
Vol 111 (1) ◽  
pp. 166-172 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. C¸oban ◽  
R. Boehm

A numerical model of a three-phase, direct-contact, spray-column heat exchanger has been developed. This model has been used to calculate performance information about this type of device and to compare, where possible, to experiments. General equations are defined for distance up the column using a physically based model for the local heat transfer. This model has been used to investigate a number of characteristics of these devices, such as temperature and holdup distributions through the column. A new formulation is given for a mixed, time-averaged temperature that may be representative of measurements taken with temperature transducers in direct-contact heat exchangers. Little has been given in the literature about quantitative variations of performance as a function of the key independent variables, and information on these aspects is presented here. Although the results presented are for a specific geometry (0.61 m diameter, 3 m active column height, evaporating pentane in 85°C water), the variations shown can give insights generally into the factors affecting performance in these devices. In virtually all cases examined here, extremely good comparisons are shown between predictions and measurements. Conclusions are drawn about the applicability of the model and the important effects demonstrated.


Author(s):  
Luca Mangani ◽  
David Roos Launchbury ◽  
Ernesto Casartelli ◽  
Giulio Romanelli

The computation of heat transfer phenomena in gas turbines plays a key role in the continuous quest to increase performance and life of both component and machine. In order to assess different cooling approaches computational fluid dynamics (CFD) is a fundamental tool. Until now the task has often been carried out with RANS simulations, mainly due to the relatively short computational time. The clear drawback of this approach is in terms of accuracy, especially in those situations where averaged turbulence-structures are not able to capture the flow physics, thus under or overestimating the local heat transfer. The present work shows the development of a new explicit high-order incompressible solver for time-dependent flows based on the open source C++ Toolbox OpenFOAM framework. As such, the solver is enabled to compute the spatially filtered Navier-Stokes equations applied in large eddy simulations for incompressible flows. An overview of the development methods is provided, presenting numerical and algorithmic details. The solver is verified using the method of manufactured solutions, and a series of numerical experiments is performed to show third-order accuracy in time and low temporal error levels. Typical cooling devices in turbomachinery applications are then investigated, such as the flow over a turbulator geometry involving heated walls and a film cooling application. The performance of various sub-grid-scale models are tested, such as static Smagorinsky, dynamic Lagrangian, dynamic one-equation turbulence models, dynamic Smagorinsky, WALE and sigma-model. Good results were obtained in all cases with variations among the individual models.


2020 ◽  
pp. 1-34
Author(s):  
Matthew Carlson ◽  
Francisco Alvarez

Abstract A new generation of Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) technologies is under development to provide dispatchable renewable power generation and reduce the levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) to 6 cents/kWh by leveraging heat transfer fluids (HTF) capable of operation at higher temperatures and coupling with higher efficiency power conversion cycles. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has funded three pathways for Generation 3 CSP (Gen3CSP) technology development to leverage solid, liquid, and gaseous HTFs to transfer heat to a supercritical carbon dioxide (sCO2) Brayton cycle. This paper presents the design and off-design capabilities of a 1 MWth sCO2 test system that can provide sCO2 coolant to the primary heat exchangers (PHX) coupling the high-temperature HTFs to the sCO2 working fluid of the power cycle. This system will demonstrate design, performance, lifetime, and operability at a scale relevant to commercial CSP. A dense-phase high pressure canned motor pump is used to supply up to 5.3 kg/s of sCO2 flow to the primary heat exchanger at pressures up to 250 bar and temperatures up to 715 °C with ambient air as the ultimate heat sink. Key component requirements for this system are presented in this paper.


2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 426-445
Author(s):  
Ahmed A. Ali ◽  
Mushtaq I. Hasan ◽  
Ghassan Adnan

In this paper the effect of surface roughness on the performance of counter flow microchannel heat exchanger has been numerically investigated. The studied Microchannel heat exchanger is a square shape and made of aluminum as substrate material with different values of hydraulic diameters (20, 50, 110, 150 ) μm. The working fluid used is water  at constant properties. Roughness- viscosity model has been used to study the roughness effect with 0.14 ratio of roughness to hydraulic diameter.  The results obtained indicate that pressure drop of (CFMCHX) increased with increasing surface roughness and decrease hydraulic diameter also the results showed that there is a slight increasing in thermal performance with increasing the surface roughness.


1970 ◽  
Vol 92 (3) ◽  
pp. 301-309 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. Angelino ◽  
E. Macchi

The computation of power cycles employing carbon dioxide as working fluid and extending down to the critical region requires the knowledge of the thermodynamic properties of CO2 within a wide range of pressures and temperatures. Available data are recognized to be insufficient or insufficiently accurate chiefly in the vicinity of the critical dome. Newly published density and specific heat measurements are employed to compute thermodynamic functions at temperatures between 0 and 50 deg C, where the need of better data is more urgent. Methods for the computation of thermal properties from density measurement in the low and in the high temperature range are presented and discussed. Results are reported of the computation of entropy and enthalpy of CO2 in the range 150–750 deg C and 40–600 atm. The probable precision of the tables is inferred from an error analysis based on the generation, by means of a computer program of a set of pseudoexperimental points which, treated as actual measurements, yield useful information about the accuracy of the calculation procedure.


Author(s):  
Lindsey V. Randle ◽  
Brian M. Fronk

Abstract In this study, we use infrared thermography to calculate local heat transfer coefficients of top and bottom heated flows of near-critical carbon dioxide in an array of parallel microchannels. These data are used to evaluate the relative importance of buoyancy for different flow arrangements. A Joule heated thin wall made of Inconel 718 applies a uniform heat flux either above or below the horizontal flow. A Torlon PAI test section consists of three parallel microchannels with a hydraulic diameter of 923 μm. The reduced inlet temperature (TR = 1.006) and reduced pressure (PR = 1.03) are held constant. For each heater orientation, the mass flux (520 kgm−2s−2 ≤ G ≤ 800 kgm−2s−2) and heat flux (4.7 Wcm−2 ≤ q″ ≤ 11.1 Wcm−2) are varied. A 2D resistance network analysis method calculates the bulk temperatures and heat transfer coefficients. In this analysis, we divide the test section into approximately 250 segments along the stream-wise direction. We then calculate the bulk temperatures using the enthalpy from the upstream segment, the heat flux in a segment, and the pressure. To isolate the effect of buoyancy, we screen the data to omit conditions where flow acceleration may be important or where relaminarization may occur. In the developed region of the channel, there was a 10 to 15 percent reduction of the local heat transfer coefficients for the upward heating mode compared to downward heating with the same mass and heat fluxes. Thus buoyancy effects should be considered when developing correlations for these types of flow.


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