Numerical study of wave processes in a pressure-wave refrigerator

The paper provides some results concerning the numerical study of the strongly transient gasdynamic processes in a pressure-wave refrigerator (PWR). A hierarchical set of numerical models from the simplest one-dimensional to a fully three-dimensional formulation is introduced. The computations show that one-dimensional solutions give a reasonable foundation for the understanding of PWR operational principles but cannot satisfactorily predict the refrigeration efficiency. Good agreement with experiment is achieved by considering two- and three-dimensional effects of gas mixing by overlap of rotating nozzles and expansion tubes. Received Received 14 February 1996 / Accepted 1 June 1996