Analytical Solution of Heat Exchange in Typical Electrocaloric Devices

Most of electrocaloric devices reported so far can be simplified as a multilayer structure in which thermal source and sink are different materials at two ends. The thermal conduction in the multilayer structure is the key for the performance of the devices. In this paper, the analytical solutions for the thermal conduction in a multilayer structure with four layers are introduced. The middle two layers are electrocaloric materials. The analytical solutions are also simplified for a hot/cold plate with two sides being different media - a typical case for thermal treatment of materials. The analytical solutions include series with infinite terms. It is proved that these series are convergent so the sum of a series can be calculated using the first N terms. The equation for calculating the N is introduced. Based on the case study, it is found that the N is usually a small number, mostly less than 40 and rarely more than 100. The issues related to the application of the analytical solutions for the simulation of real electrocaloric devices are discussed, which includes the usage of multilayer ceramic capacitor, influence of electrodes, and characterization of thin film.

Modeling of Supercritical Co2 Shell-and-Tube Heat Exchangers Under Extreme Conditions. Part 2: Heat Exchanger Model

Heat exchangers play a critical role in supercritical CO2 Brayton cycles by providing necessary waste heat recovery. Supercritical CO2 thermal cycles potentially achieve higher energy density and thermal efficiency operating at elevated temperatures and pressures. Accurate and computationally efficient estimation of heat exchanger performance metrics at these conditions is important for the design and optimization of sCO2 systems and thermal cycles. In this paper (Part II), a computationally efficient and accurate numerical model is developed to predict the performance of STHXs. Highly accurate correlations reported in Part I of this study are utilized to improve the accuracy of performance predictions, and the concept of volume averaging is used to abstract the geometry and reduce computation time. The numerical model is validated by comparison with CFD simulations and provides high accuracy and significantly lower computation time compared to existing numerical models. A preliminary optimization study is conducted and the advantage of using supercritical CO2 as a working fluid for energy systems is demonstrated.

Numerical Modelling of Simultaneous Heat and Moisture Transport in Fire Protective Suits Under Flash Fire Exposure and Evaluation of Second Degree Burn Time

An improved numerical model is developed for coupled heat and moisture transport in fire protective suit exposed to flash fire. This model is combined with Pennes' bio-heat transfer model and subsequently, second-degree burn time is estimated using Henriques' burn integral. Natural convection is considered inside the air gap present between the multilayer clothing ensemble and the skin. Comparisons of temperature and moisture distribution within the multilayer clothing, air gap, and the skin during the exposure are presented considering combined heat and moisture transport and only heat transport. Effect of moisture transport on the protective performance of the fire protective suit is shown. Impact of both horizontal and vertical air gap orientations on second-degree burn time is studied. Effect of temperature-dependent thermo-physical properties, relative humidity, fiber regain, different exposure conditions and fabric combinations for the fire protective suits on burn time is analyzed.

Modeling of Supercritical Co2 Shell-and-Tube Heat Exchangers Under Extreme Conditions. Part 1: Correlation Development

High-temperature supercritical CO2 Brayton cycles are promising possibilities for future stationary power generation and hybrid electric propulsion applications. Heat exchangers are critical components in supercritical CO2 thermal cycles and require accurate correlations and comprehensive performance modeling under extreme temperatures and pressures. In this paper (part I), new Colburn and friction factor correlations are developed to quantify shell-side heat transfer and friction characteristics of flow within heat exchangers in the shell-and-tube configuration. Using experimental and CFD data sets from existing literature, multivariate regression analysis is conducted to achieve correlations that capture the effect of multiple critical geometric parameters. These correlations offer superior accuracy and versatility as compared to previous studies and predict the thermohydraulic performance of about 90% of the existing experimental and CFD data within ±15%. Supplementary thermohydraulic performance data is acquired from CFD simulations with sCO2 as working fluid to validate the developed correlations and demonstrate its capability to be applied to sCO2 heat exchangers.

Conjugate Free Convection Heat Transfer and Thermodynamic Analysis of Infrared Suppression Device with Cylindrical Funnels

A convection system can be designed as an energy-efficient one by making a considerable reduction in exergy losses. In this context, entropy generation analysis is performed on the infrared suppression system numerically. In addition, results due to heat transfer are also shown. The numerical solution of the Navier-stokes equation, energy equation, and turbulence equation is executed using ANSYS Fluent 15.0. To perform the numerical analysis, different parameters such as the number of funnels, Rayleigh number (Ra), inner surface temperature, and geometric ratio are varied in the practical range. Results are shown in terms of heat transfer, entropy generation, irreversibility (due to heat transfer and fluid friction), and Bejan number with some relevant parameters. Streamlines and temperature contours are also provided for better visualization of temperature and flow field around the device. Results show that heat transfer and mass flow rate increase with the increase in Ra. Entropy generation and the irreversibility rise with an increase in the number of funnels and geometric ratio. Also, the Bejan number decreases with an increase in Ra and the number of funnels. A cooling time is also obtained using the lumped capacitance method.

Role of Three-Dimensional Swirl in Forced Convection Heat Transfer Enhancement in Wavy-Plate-Fin Channels

The influence of swirl flow on enhanced forced convection in wavy-plate-fin cores has been investigated. Three-dimensional computational simulations were carried out for steady-state, periodically developed flow of air (Pr ~ 0.71) with channel walls subject to constant-uniform temperature and flow rates in the range 50 = Re = 4000. The recirculation that develops in the wall troughs and grows to an axial helix is scaled by the Swirl number Sw. As Sw increases, tornado-shaped vortices appear in the wave trough region mid-channel height, then extend longitudinally to encompass majority of the flow channel. As shown by the local wall-shear and heat transfer coefficient variations, the boundary-layer thinning upstream of the wave peak assists to intensify the momentum and heat transfer. However, the flow recirculation in wave trough impedes the local heat transfer at low Sw due to flow stagnation but promotes it at high Sw because of swirl-augmented fluid mixing. Swirling flows also create pressure drag that contributes substantively to the overall pressure loss. Its proportion grows as Sw, corrugation severity, and fin spacing increases to as much as 80% of the total pressure drop. The fin-wall curvature-induced secondary circulation nevertheless produces significantly enhanced convection, and more so in flows with higher Sw. It is quantified by Ff (or j), which is seen to increase log-linearly as fin corrugation aspect ratio and/or fin spacing ratio increases; the influence of cross-section aspect ratio is found to be marginal.

Opportunities in Nanoengineered Surface Designs for Enhanced Condensation Heat and Mass Transfer

Recent advancements in surface nanoengineering have spurred intense interests in their implementation for enhancing condensation heat transfer. When appropriately designed, nanoengineered surfaces not only lead to highly efficient transport mechanisms not achievable with conventional dropwise condensation, they also demonstrate the possibility of augmenting condensation of low surface tension fluids widely used in industry. These advantages are further enhanced by the development of highly scalable nanofabrication methods, which enable the potential transition from laboratory-scale prototypes to real-world industrial applications. In this review, we discuss the progress, opportunities, and challenges of enhancing condensation heat and mass transfer with nanoengineered surfaces. This article provides an overview of the recent developments in micro/nanoscale coating and structure fabrication techniques and performs a thorough comparison of their condensation performance, elucidating the complex interfacial transport mechanism involved. Surface structuring methods that are durable, scalable and low-cost are essential attributes for large-scale industrial implementation. Here, the methods used to improve surface durability and demonstrations of nanostructure-enhanced meter-scale condensers are presented. Limitations are discussed and the potential techniques to overcome these challenges are summarized. Given the recent development of metal additive manufacturing technology and its growing relevance in manufacturing processes, we end this review by providing our perspectives on the opportunities in enabling surface nanostructuring of metal additive manufactured materials and the potential of nanometric-millimetric co-design optimization for the development of next-generation additively manufactured condensers.

A Numerical Study of Heat Transfer from an Array of Jets Impinging on a Flat Moving Surface

Numerical study of heat transfer between circular jet arrays and the flat moving surface is carried out. Two jet patterns: inline and staggered, are chosen. Total nine circular jets are used in both jet patterns. The analysis is carried out for steady-state and transient conditions with the turbulent flow of jet fluid. In steady-state analysis, the influence of surface motion on the flow field and heat transfer by the array of jets is analyzed. The surface-to-jet velocity ratio (r) varies from 0 to 2. In transient analysis, the effect of jet pattern on the cooling of hot moving plate is analyzed. The two-equation shear stress transport (SST) k-? turbulence model is used for solving Reynolds averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) equations of conservation of mass, momentum, and energy for incompressible turbulent flow. The steady-state analysis shows that surface motion has a significant effect on the flow field and heat transfer. The transient analysis results show that a staggered jet pattern cools the plate more uniformly than an inline jet pattern.

Effect of Pin-fins On Jet Impingement Heat Transfer Over a Rotating Disk

Many engineering applications consist of rotating components which experience high heat load. For instance, applications like the gas turbine engine consist of rotating disks and the study of heat transfer over such rotating surfaces is of particular interest. In the case of gas turbines, the disk also needs to be protected from the ingress of hot turbine gases caused by the low pressure region created due to the radially outward pumping of fluid close to the rotating surface. Present experimental study investigates the effects of introducing pin-fins on heat transfer over surface of a rotating gas turbine disk. Experiments were conducted at rotational Reynolds numbers (ReR) of 5487 - 12803 and jet Reynolds numbers (Re) of 5000 - 18000, nozzle to target spacing (z/d = 2 - 6), impingement eccentricities (e = 0 -0.67), angles of impingement (0°-20°), and the pin fin height (Hf = 3.05mm - 19.05mm). Steady state temperature measurements were taken using thermocouples embedded in the disk, and area average Nusselt number (Nu) was calculated. The results have been compared with those for a smooth aluminum disk. Nu was significantly enhanced by the presence of pin-fins. The enhancement was higher for lower Re and the maximum enhancement was found to be 3.9 times that of a smooth disk for Re = 5000. Qualitative visualization of flow field has been performed for smooth and the pin-fin case using the commercial simulation package Ansys Fluent to further understand the flow features that result in the enhancement.

Evaluation of Nusselt Number for a Flow in a Parallel Plates Using MHD Second Order Slip Model

In this study, two separate boundary condition models, as proposed by Beskok and Karniadakis [1] and Deissler [2], widely preferred for the second order boundary condition, were used. These two proposed boundary condition models were solved in the presence of a magnetic field moving normal to the plate surface in magneto-hydrodynamic (MHD) flow between micro-parallel plates with constant wall heat flux. The energy equation for the second-order temperature jump boundary condition, taking into account the momentum and viscous dissipation, as well as the corresponding Nusselt value were solved analytically in slip flow regime.The flow of an incompressible viscous flow between fixed micro-parallel plates with electrical conductivity is assumed to be constant, laminar, hydrodynamically and thermally developed. The closed form solutions for the temperature field and the fully developed Nusselt number are derived as a function of the Magnetic parameter (MHD), Knudsen number and Brinkman number and shown graphically and in a tabular form. The second order boundary condition model proposed by Deissler [2] predicts the Nusselt number to be at lower values when compared to the first order boundary condition model, and the second order boundary condition model proposed by Beskok and Karniadakis [1] predicts the Nusselt number to be at higher values than that of the first order boundary condition model. Moreover, increasing the magnetic field parameter M, led to higher Nusselt values in the slip flow model proposed by both Deissler [2] and Beskok and Karniadakis [1] compared to that when M = 0.