scholarly journals Condensation of Refrigerants in Horizontal Microfin Tubes. Numerical Analysis of Heat Transfer for Annular Flow Regime.

1998 ◽  
Vol 64 (623) ◽  
pp. 2258-2265
Author(s):  
Shigeru NOZU ◽  
Hiroshi HONDA
1999 ◽  
Vol 122 (1) ◽  
pp. 80-91 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Nozu ◽  
H. Honda

A method is presented for estimating the condensation heat transfer coefficient in a horizontal, spirally grooved microfin tube. Based on the flow observation study performed by the authors, a laminar film condensation model in the annular flow regime is proposed. The model assumes that all the condensate flow occurs through the grooves. The condensate film is segmented into thin and thick film regions. In the thin film region formed on the fin surface, the condensate is assumed to be drained by the combined surface tension and vapor shear forces. In the thick film region formed in the groove, on the other hand, the condensate is assumed to be driven by the vapor shear force. The present and previous local heat transfer data including four fluids (CFC11, HCFC22, HCFC123, and HFC134a) and three microfin tubes are found to agree with the present predictions to a mean absolute deviation of 15.1 percent. [S0022-1481(00)01501-2]


Author(s):  
Avram Bar-Cohen ◽  
Ilai Sher ◽  
Emil Rahim

The present study is aimed at evaluating the ability of conventional “macro-pipe” correlations and regime transitions to predict the two-phase thermofluid characteristics of mini-channel cold plates. Use is made of the Taitel-Dukler flow regime maps, seven classical heat transfer coefficient correlations and two dryout predictions. The vast majority of the mini-channel two-phase heat-transfer data, taken from the literature, is predicted to fall in the annular regime, in agreement with the reported observations. A characteristic heat transfer coefficient locus has been identified, with a positive slope following the transition from Intermittent to Annular flow and a negative slope following the onset of partial dryout at higher qualities. While the classical two-phase heat transfer correlations are generally capable of providing good agreement with the low-quality annular flow data the quality at which partial dryout occurs and the ensuing heat transfer rates are not predictable by the available macro-pipe correlations.


2020 ◽  
Vol 44 (3) ◽  
pp. 362-384
Author(s):  
Amen Younes ◽  
Ibrahim Hassan ◽  
Lyes Kadem

A semi-analytical model for predicting heat transfer and pressure drop in annular flow regime for saturated flow boiling in a horizontal microtube at a uniform heat flux has been developed based on a one-dimensional separated flow model. More than 600 two-phase heat transfer, 498 two-phase pressure drop, and 153 void fraction experimental data points for annular flow regime were collected from the literature to validate the present model. The collected data were recorded for various working fluids, R134a, R1234ze, R236fa, R410a, R113, and CO2, for round macro- and microsingle horizontal tubes with an inner diameter range of 0.244 mm ≤ Dh ≤ 3.1 mm, a heated length to diameter ratio of 90 ≤ Lh/Dh ≤ 2000, a saturation temperature range of –10 ≤ Tsat ≤ +50 °C, and liquid to vapor density ratios in the range 6.4 ≤ ρf/ρg ≤ 188. The model was tested for laminar and turbulent flow boiling conditions corresponding to an equivalent Reynolds number, 1900 ≤ Reeq ≤ 48 000, and confinement number, 0.27 ≤ Cconf ≤ 3.4. Under the annular flow regime, the present model predicted the collected data of the heat transfer, pressure drop, and void fraction with mean absolute errors (MAE) of 18.14%, 23.02%, and 3.22%, respectively.


Author(s):  
Zan Wu ◽  
Bengt Sundén ◽  
Wei Li ◽  
Vishwas V. Wadekar

The present study collected and analyzed flow boiling data points which fall in the annular flow regime with an increasing heat transfer coefficient h - vapor quality x trend (h increases with increasing x) in small diameter channels (0.1 < dh < 3.1 mm) for halogenated refrigerants, CO2 and water. In this annular flow regime, heat transfer coefficient also depends on both heat flux and mass flux. It is proposed that the heat flux dependence comes mainly through its effect on interfacial waves and the fact that bubble growth and coalescence in isolated bubble flow and elongated bubble flow propagate oscillations downwards into the annular flow. In other words, heat flux affects the heat transfer coefficient in the annular flow regime by upstream effects or historical effects. A semi-empirical model for annular flow was developed by starting with pure thin film evaporation and then corrections were applied based on the Boiling number and the liquid Reynolds number. The resulting simple model can predict about 89.1% of the entire database within a ± 30% error band. Almost all data points can be predicted within a ± 50% error band. It is shown that the parametric trends are well captured by the new model. Besides, no noticeable macro-to-micro/miniscale transition was observed for the entire database of annular flow. Therefore, the new model can be applied to model annular flow covering from microchannels to relatively large channels.


Author(s):  
Srinivas Garimella

This paper presents an overview of the use of flow visualization in micro- and mini-channel geometries for the development of pressure drop and heat transfer models during condensation of refrigerants. Condensation flow mechanisms for round, square and rectangular tubes with hydraulic diameters in the range 1–5 mm for 0 < x < 1 and 150 kg/m2-s and 750 kg/m2-s were recorded using unique experimental techniques that permit flow visualization during the condensation process. The effect of channel shape and miniaturization on the flow regime transitions was documented. The flow mechanisms were categorized into four different flow regimes: intermittent flow, wavy flow, annular flow, and dispersed flow. These flow regimes were further subdivided into several flow patterns within each regime. It was observed that the intermittent and annular flow regimes become larger as the tube hydraulic diameter is decreased, at the expense of the wavy flow regime. These maps and transition lines can be used to predict the flow regime or pattern that will be established for a given mass flux, quality and tube geometry. These observed flow mechanisms, together with pressure drop measurements, are being used to develop experimentally validated models for pressure drop during condensation in each of these flow regimes for a variety of circular and noncircular channels with 0.4 < Dh < 5 mm. These flow regime-based models yield substantially better pressure drop predictions than the traditionally used correlations that are primarily based on air-water flows for large diameter tubes. Condensation heat transfer coefficients were also measured using a unique thermal amplification technique that simultaneously allows for accurate measurement of the low heat transfer rates over small increments of refrigerant quality and high heat transfer coefficients characteristic of microchannels. Models for these measured heat transfer coefficients are being developed using the documented flow mechanisms and the corresponding pressure drop models as the basis.


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