Experimental Investigation on Natural Circulation in a Thermosyphon Reboiler

Author(s):  
Xing Luo ◽  
Yanming Gao ◽  
Stephan Kabelac

Thermosyphon reboilers are widely used in refineries, petrochemical industries and other chemical processes. The liquid product stream coming from the bottom of the vapor-liquid separator is heated in an evaporator consisting of a vertical tube or tube bundle. When the evaporation occurs, the specific volume of the two-phase fluid increases. The upward buoyancy force caused by the density difference between the evaporator and down-flow pipe drives the fluid flowing through the evaporator in to the separator and forms a natural circulation. The experiments were conducted in a pilot scale thermosyphon system in which the evaporator consists of 7 steel tubes (outside diameter 30 mm, wall thickness 2 mm, length 4 m). A mathematical model was set up to simulate the heat transfer and pressure drop, in which empirical equations from literature were used. With the help of the simulation, the flow boiling heat transfer coefficients inside the tubes can be evaluated from a few measured local wall temperatures.

Author(s):  
Wenhai Li ◽  
Ken Alabi ◽  
Foluso Ladeinde

Over the years, empirical correlations have been developed for predicting saturated flow boiling [1–15] and condensation [16–30] heat transfer coefficients inside horizontal/vertical tubes or micro-channels. In the present work, we have examined 30 of these models, and modified many of them for use in compact plate-fin heat exchangers. However, the various correlations, which have been developed for pipes and ducts, have been modified in our work to make them applicable to extended fin surfaces. The various correlations have been used in a low-order, one-dimensional, finite-volume type numerical integration of the flow and heat transfer equations in heat exchangers. The NIST’s REFPROP database [31] is used to account for the large variations in the fluid thermo-physical properties during phase change. The numerical results are compared with Yara’s experimental data [32]. The validity of the various boiling and condensation models for a real plate-fin heat exchanger design is discussed. The results show that some of the modified boiling and condensation correlations can provide acceptable prediction of heat transfer coefficient for two-phase flows in compact plate-fin heat exchangers.


Author(s):  
Cheol Huh ◽  
Moo Hwan Kim

With a single microchannel and a series of microheaters made with MEMS technique, two-phase pressure drop and local flow boiling heat transfer were investigated using deionized water in a single horizontal rectangular microchannel. The test microchannel has a hydraulic diameter of 100 μm and length of 40 mm. A real time observation of the flow patterns with simultaneous measurement are made possible. Tests are performed for mass fluxes of 90, 169, and 267 kg/m2s and heat fluxes of from 100 to 600 kW/m2. The experimental local flow boiling heat transfer coefficients and two-phase frictional pressure gradient are evaluated and the effects of heat flux, mass flux, and vapor qualities on flow boiling are studied. Both the evaluated experimental data are compared with existing correlations. The experimental heat transfer coefficients are nearly independent on mass flux and the vapor quality. Most of all correlations do not provide reliable heat transfer coefficients predictions with vapor quality and prediction accuracy. As for two-phase pressure drop, the measured pressure drop increases with the mass flux and heat flux. Most of all existing correlations of two-phase frictional pressure gradient do not predict the experimental data except some limited conditions.


Author(s):  
Haruhiko Ohta ◽  
Koichi Inoue ◽  
Yuichiro Shimada

Flow boiling heat transfer in a single small tube is investigated by using FC72 as a working fluid. The heat transfer coefficients are measured in the ranges of heat flux 2–24kW/m2 and mass velocity 100–400kg/m2s under the condition of near atmospheric pressure. Test tube, made of stainless steel, has an inner diameter of 0.51mm and a heated length of 200mm. The tube is located horizontally in a vacuum chamber to reduce the heat loss and to minimize the time to obtain data regarded as that of steady state. In the single-phase region, heat transfer coefficients due to forced convection are in good agreement with the values from the conventional theories. In the saturated region, measured heat transfer characteristics are quite different depending on whether the test liquid is deaerated or not deaerated before the experiments. By using deaerated liquid, three different heat transfer regimes are observed: In the first regime, the heat transfer is dominated by nucleate boiling in low vapor quality, and the heat transfer is deteriorated or enhanced depending on the channel confinement and heat flux. In the second regime, the heat transfer is dominated by two-phase forced convection in moderate quality as is well known for the tubes of normal size. In the third regime, the heat transfer is dominated again by two-phase forced convection, but is deteriorated in high quality. One or two regimes can disappear or become unclear depending on the conditions of flow and heating. The effects of vapor quality and mass velocity on the heat transfer characteristics due to two-phase forced convection in the moderate vapor quality are clarified in the experimental ranges tested. And a reason for the gradual heat transfer deterioration observed in high quality is discussed based on the liquid-vapor behaviors inherent in small diameter tubes.


2018 ◽  
Vol 130 ◽  
pp. 624-636 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sofia Korniliou ◽  
Coinneach Mackenzie-Dover ◽  
John R.E. Christy ◽  
Souad Harmand ◽  
Anthony J. Walton ◽  
...  

1999 ◽  
Vol 121 (1) ◽  
pp. 89-101 ◽  
Author(s):  
O. Zu¨rcher ◽  
J. R. Thome ◽  
D. Favrat

Experimental test results for flow boiling of pure ammonia inside horizontal tubes were obtained for a plain stainless steel tube. Tests were run at a nominal saturation temperature of 4°C, nine mass velocities from 20–140 kg/m2 s, vapor qualities from 1–99 percent and heat fluxes from 5–58 kW/m2. Two-phase flow observations showed that the current test data covered the following regimes: fully stratified, stratified-wavy, intermittent, annular, and annular with partial dryout. The Kattan-Thome-Favrat flow boiling model accurately predicted the local heat transfer coefficients measured in all these flow regimes with only two small modifications to their flow map (to extend its application to G < 100 kg/m2 s). Their flow boiling model was also successfully compared to the earlier ammonia flow boiling data of Chaddock and Buzzard (1986). The Gungor-Winterton (1987) correlation instead gave very poor accuracy for ammonia.


Author(s):  
Alexey Vasilievich Ezhov ◽  
Sergey Sergeevich Ivanov ◽  
Aleksandr Bukin ◽  
Vladimir Grigorievich Bukin

The paper presents the results of an experimental study of the effect of oil on the heat transfer rate at boiling of mixed refrigerant R406A. Since the air conditioning system is not a pure refrigerant, but a mixture of oil with a concentration of up to 8%, such an amount of oil affects both hydrodynamics and heat exchange in the evaporators. The experimental work covers the entire range of regime parameters typical for these systems. There is shown the process of changing oil concentration in the pipe, as the working fluid boils, proving that most of the oil pipe does not impair the heat exchange in the course of two-phase flow boiling. Different modes of refrigerant R406A boiling dynamics have been defined, and each mode is given a quantitative assessment in terms of the effects of the oil and explaining of this effect on the fluid flow and heat transfer based on visual observations and the experiment results. The main factor of the effect is the freon-oil foam, which increases the proportion of the wetted surface in the wave and stratified modes and the heat transfer rate to 30%. A comparison of the heat transfer coefficients both in the cross section and along the pipe length has been performed, showing that the maximum change in heat transfer occurs in the upper part of the surface due to developing a dry wall on it and wetting it with freon-oil foam. A comparison of the heat transfer rate of pure refrigerant R406A has been done; the presence of oil in it shows that the effect of oil is complex and ambiguous. Calculation and criterion dependences for calculation of heat transfer coefficients in different modes have been proposed.


Author(s):  
M. H. Kim ◽  
J. S. Shin ◽  
C. Huh ◽  
T. J. Kim ◽  
K. W. Seo

This paper reviews recent Korean studies of flow characteristics, flow boiling, and flow condensation in micro- and mini-channels. The characteristics of local heat transfer and pressure drops were experimentally investigated using condensing R134a two-phase flow, in a single round tube, with an inner diameter of 0.691 mm. New experimental techniques were developed to measure the condensation heat transfer coefficient. Tests were performed for a mass flux of 100 to 600 kg/m2s, a heat flux of 5 to 20 kW/m2, and a saturation temperature of 40°C. The experimental local condensation heat transfer coefficients and two-phase frictional pressure gradients are shown. Comparisons of experimental data with existing models reveal that the correlations failed to predict the present data. This study contains the unique sub-millimeter-diameter, single round tube, condensation data reported in the literature.


2011 ◽  
Vol 133 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Saptarshi Basu ◽  
Sidy Ndao ◽  
Gregory J. Michna ◽  
Yoav Peles ◽  
Michael K. Jensen

An experimental study of two-phase heat transfer coefficients was carried out using R134a in uniformly heated horizontal circular microtubes with diameters from 0.50 mm to 1.60 mm over a range of mass fluxes, heat fluxes, saturation pressures, and vapor qualities. Heat transfer coefficients increased with increasing heat flux and saturation pressure but were independent of mass flux. The effects of vapor quality on heat transfer coefficients were less pronounced and varied depending on the quality. The data were compared with seven flow boiling correlations. None of the correlations predicted the experimental data very well, although they generally predicted the correct trends within limits of experimental error. A correlation was developed, which predicted the heat transfer coefficients with a mean average error of 29%. 80% of the data points were within the ±30% error limit.


Author(s):  
Dong Liu ◽  
Suresh V. Garimella

Flow boiling heat transfer in a microchannel heat sink is experimentally investigated. The microchannels considered are 275 μm wide and 636 μm deep, and the experiments are conducted at inlet water temperatures in the range of 66 to 95°C and mass fluxes of 341 to 936 kg/m2s. Convective boiling heat transfer coefficients are measured and compared to predictions from correlations proposed for larger channels. While an existing correlation was found to provide satisfactory prediction of the heat transfer coefficient in subcooled boiling in the microchannels, saturated boiling was not well predicted by the correlations for macrochannels. A new heat transfer model is developed to correlate the data in the saturated boiling regime. Good agreement with the experimental measurements indicates that this correlation is suitable for use in the design of two-phase microchannel heat sinks.


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