Experimental Investigation of Mixed Convection in a Channel With an Open Cavity

Mixed convection in an open cavity with a heated wall bounded by a horizontally unheated plate is investigated experimentally. The cavity has the heated wall on the inflow side. Mixed convection fluid flow and heat transfer within the cavity is governed by the buoyancy parameter, Richardson number (Ri), and Reynolds number (Re). The results are reported in terms of wall temperature profiles of the heated wall and flow visualization for Re = 100 and 1000, Ri in the range 30–110 (for Re = 1000) and 2800–8700 (for Re = 100), the ratio of the length to the height of cavity (L/D) is in the range 0.5–1.5, and the ratio of the channel height to cavity height (H/D) is in the range of 0.5 and 1.0. The present results show that the maximum dimensional temperature rise values decrease as the Reynolds and the Richardson numbers decrease. The flow visualization points out that for Re = 1000 there are two nearly distinct fluid motions: a parallel forced flow in the channel and a recirculation flow inside the cavity. For Re = 100 the effect of a stronger buoyancy determines a penetration of thermal plume from the heated plate wall into the upper channel. Nusselt numbers increase when L/D increase in the considered range of Richardson numbers.     

On the validity of Fourier's law in systems with spatially varying strain rates

Non-equilibrium molecular dynamics (NEMD) simulations are used to study the generation of heat fluxes in systems with spatially varying shear rates. We show that the kinetic temperature, when used in Fourier's law of heat conduction, does not correctly account for the heat flux, and that the normal temperature as described by Rugh (1997, Phys. Rev. Lett., 78, 772), should be used. Only in the absence of normal temperature gradients can heat fluxes due to strain rate coupling be correctly calculated.     

Experimental Investigation of Opposing Mixed Convection in a Channel with an open Cavity Below

Abstract

In this article, mixed convection in an open cavity with a heated wall bounded by a horizontal unheated plate is investigated experimentally. The heated wall is on the opposite side of the forced inflow. The results are reported in terms of wall temperature profiles of the heated wall and flow visualization. The range of pertinent parameters used in this experiment are Reynolds numbers (Re) from 100 to 2,000 and Richardson numbers (Ri) from 4.3 to 6,400. Also, the ratio between the length and the height of cavity (L/D) ranges from 0.5–2.0, and the ratio between the channel and cavity height (H/D) is equal to 1.0. The lack of experimental results on mixed convection in a channel with an open cavity below was an impetus for investigating this configuration when one cavity vertical wall is heated at uniform heat flux. The present results show that at the lowest investigated Reynolds number, the surface temperatures are lower than the corresponding surface temperatures for Re = 2,000 at the same ohmic heat flux. The flow visualization shows that for Re = 1,000, there are two nearly distinct fluid motions: a parallel forced flow in the channel and a recirculation flow inside the cavity. For Re = 100, the effect of a stronger buoyancy determines a penetration of thermal plumes from the heated plate wall into the upper channel. Moreover, the flow visualization shows that for lower Reynolds numbers, the forced motion penetrates inside the cavity, and a vortex structure is adjacent to the unheated vertical plate. At higher Reynolds numbers, the vortex structure has a larger extension while L/D is held constant.     

Heat transfer at a laminar free convection and separated flow past a rib in a vertical channel with isothermal walls

The results of numerical computations of a free laminar convection and heat transfer between two parallel isothermal plates in the presence of a single rib on the channel surface are presented. The investigations have been conducted for a channel with the aspect ratio AR = L/w = 10, where L is the channel height, and w is the distance between the plates. An infinitely thin adiabatic rib was located on one of the channel walls in the middle of its height. The relative rib height l/w was varied in the range 0÷0.8. The wall temperature was higher than the ambient temperature, and the Rayleigh number was varied in the range Ra = 10²÷10⁵. The main attention has been paid to the study of the influence of the rib height and the Rayleigh number on local and integral heat transfer and the Reynolds number in the channel (the convective thrust). A fundamental difference in the heat transfer over the channel height has been shown on the ribbed wall and on a smooth surface. The computational results have been compared with the case of a symmetric distribution of the ribs on the both walls with the integral height equal to a single rib.     

Thermalhydraulic Characteristics in Annular Pebble Beds with Axial and Radial Gas Flows

The purpose of this article is to determine the heat transfer and hydraulic drag in thin annular pebble beds with axial gas flow and investigate the flow distribution along annular pebble beds with radial flow. The experimental investigations showed that in thin annular pebble beds heat transfer values, equal to those for large (unlimited) pebble beds, could be achieved. The observed distributions of the radial flow in annular pebble beds demonstrated that regulation of flow distribution is possible by changing the permeability of the inner wall (outlet header) of the annular channel.     

Comparative Study of the Thermal and Hydraulic Performance of Supercritical CO2 and Water in Microchannels Based on Entropy Generation

The excellent thermophysical properties of supercritical CO₂ (sCO₂) close to the pseudocritical point make it possible to replace water as the coolant of microchannels in application of a high heat flux radiator. The computational fluid dynamics (CFD) method verified by experimental data is used to make a comparison of the thermal hydraulic behavior in CO₂-cooled and of water-cooled microchannels. The operation conditions of the CO₂-based cooling cases cover the pseudocritical point (with the inlet temperature range of 306~320 K and the working pressure of 8 MPa), and the water-based cooling case has an inlet temperature of 308 K at the working pressure of 0.1 MPa. The channel types include the straight and zigzag microchannels with 90°, 120°, and 150° bending angles, respectively. The analysis result shows that, only when the state of CO₂ is close to the pseudocritical point, the sCO₂-cooled microchannel is of a higher average heat convection coefficient and a lower average temperature of the heated surface compared to the water-cooled microchannel. The entropy generation rate of the sCO₂-cooled microchannel can reach 0.58~0.69 times that of the entropy generation rate for the water-cooled microchannel. Adopting the zigzag structure can enhance the heat transfer, but it does not improve the comprehensive performance represented by the entropy generation rate in the sCO₂-cooled microchannel.     

Convective Heat Transfer of a Cu/Water Nanofluid Flowing Through a Circular Tube

Abstract

Fluids in which nanometer-sized solid particles are suspended are called nanofluids. These fluids can be employed to increase the heat transfer rate in various applications. In this study, the convective heat transfer for Cu/water nanofluid through a circular tube was experimentally investigated. The flow was laminar, and constant wall temperature was used as thermal boundary condition. The Nusselt number of nanofluids for different nanoparticle concentrations, as well as various Peclet numbers, was obtained. Also, the rheological properties of the nanofluid for different volume fractions of nanoparticles were measured and compared with theoretical models. The results show that the heat transfer coefficient is enhanced by increasing the nanoparticle concentrations as well as the Peclet number.     

A Lattice Boltzmann Kinetic Model for Microflow and Heat Transfer

In this paper, we propose a lattice Boltzmann BGK model for simulation of micro flows with heat transfer based on kinetic theory and the thermal lattice Boltzmann method (He et al., J. Comp. Phys. 146:282, 1998). The relaxation times are redefined in terms of the Knudsen number and a diffuse scattering boundary condition (DSBC) is adopted to consider the velocity slip and temperature jump at wall boundaries. To check validity and potential of the present model in modelling the micro flows, two two-dimensional micro flows including thermal Couette flow and thermal developing channel flow are simulated and numerical results obtained compare well with previous studies of the direct simulation Monte Carlo (DSMC), molecular dynamics (MD) approaches and the Maxwell theoretical analysis     

Experimental Investigation of Transient Forced Convection of Liquid Methane in a Channel at High Heat Flux Conditions

Transient heat transfer of liquid methane under forced convection in a 1.8 mm × 1.8 mm asymmetrically heated square channel was investigated. This study is aimed at understanding the heat transfer behavior of cryogenic propellant in cooling channels of a regeneratively cooled rocket engine at the start-up condition. To simulate high heat load conditions representative of regeneratively cooled rocket engines, a high heat flux test facility with cryogenic liquid handing capabilities was developed at the Center for Space Exploration Technology Research. The time history of inlet and outlet fluid temperatures and test section channel wall temperatures were measured at high heat flux conditions (from 1.19 to 3.80 MW/m²) and a Reynolds number (Re) range of 1.88 × 10⁵ to 3.45 × 10⁵. The measured wall temperature data point toward possible film boiling within the test section during certain tests, particularly with higher heat fluxes and lower Reynolds number conditions that resulted in higher wall temperatures. The transient average Nusselt numbers (Nu_L) of the channel obtained from the experimental measurements are lower than those calculated from the Sieder–Tate correlation (Nu_O); however, the ratio (Nu_L/Nu_O) increases with the increase in Reynolds number. The ratio is around 0.25 at the lower end of Re and then increases to 0.7 at the maximum Re studied in the present investigation.     

Experimental Validation of a Two-Dimensional Model of the Transient and Steady-State Characteristics of a Wicked Heat Pipe

Abstract

The transient behavior of a copper-water wicked (80 mesh SS-304 screen) heat pipe during start-up is studied. The transient axial temperature distributions are measured and successfully compared for all the three sections of the heat pipe with the numerical solution of a developed two-dimensional model that utilizes the concept of a growing thermal layer in the wall and the wick region and takes into account axial conduction during transient operation. Steady-state temperature profiles are obtained as a limiting case. The experimental and theoretically predicted time required to attain steady state are in close agreement as well.     

Air Flow in Aluminum Foam: Heat Transfer and Pressure Drops Measurements

Abstract

Metal foams are cellular structure materials that present open cells, randomly oriented and mostly homogeneous in size and shape. Cellular structure materials, and particularly open-cell metal foams, have been proposed as possible substitutes for traditional finned surfaces in electronics cooling applications. This article presents the heat transfer and pressure drops measurements obtained during air flow through an aluminum foam, which has 40 pores per inch with 0.63 mm pore diameter. The specimen has been inserted in a new open-circuit type wind channel with a rectangular cross-section that has recently been built at the Department of Fisica Tecnica of the University of Padova. The experimental heat transfer coefficients and pressure drops have been collected by varying the air flow rate supplied by the screw compressor that provides a variable volumetric air flow ranging between 0–90 m³h^?1 at a constant gauge pressure of 7 bar. The specific heat flux has been simulated by powering with a 25-kWm^?2 copper heater attached at the bottom of the aluminum foam base plate. The experimental results are reported in terms of heat transfer coefficients, mean normalized wall temperatures, and pressure drops.     

Increasing Preservation Efficiency and Product Quality through Control of Temperature Distributions in High Pressure Applications

The effectiveness of HP sterilisation is a function of both temperature and pressure. As during pressurisation the product temperature increases, heat transfer to the colder HPP vessel wall occurs and the product fraction near the vessel wall will be colder than the product in the middle of the vessel. The effect of the temperature distribution in the vessel on the inactivation of Bacillus stearothermophilus has been examined. A mathematical model has been built, in which both thermodynamics and inactivation kinetics are integrated. Heat transfer is based on a Finite Element simulation, inactivation kinetics are based on first order kinetics. Based on this model and experiments the effect of an homogeneous temperature distribution on inactivation is demonstrated.     

Thermal Control Simulation in High Pressure Treatment of Foods

High hydrostatic pressure (HHP) has become in the last few years a promising technology for food processing and preservation. Pressure treatment of foods always results in a temperature increase due to the work of compression. After compression, heat loss through the metal wall of the high-pressure vessel causes temperature gradients in the processed product. So, it is absolutely necessary to know how thermal exchanges in high-pressure treatments are produced and at what rate in order to establish the real conditions at which a given process is realised. In this paper, a modelling/simulation of the thermal exchanges taking place in a high-pressure pilot unit during different processes of pressurisation and depressurisation is presented. Good agreement between simulated and experimental values is found. This work involves an important advance in optimisation and regulation of high-pressure processes in food industry.     

Characteristic features of the formation of the vibrational distribution function of H2 molecules in a hydrogen stream

A theoretical analysis is made of the flow of vibrationally excited hydrogen in a channel. It is shown that coverage of the channel walls with adsorbed hydrogen atoms can substantially increase the concentration of vibrationally excited molecules in the stream. The possibility of applying these results to bulk sources of negative H⁻ hydrogen ions is discussed. It is shown that the rate of H⁻ ion generation in the source may be enhanced appreciably under conditions where this generation is achieved by dissociative attachment of thermal electrons to H₂ molecules injected into the discharge chamber, whose vibrational distribution function has been pre-enriched in excited molecules by suitably organizing the hydrogen flow in the channel. Zh. Tekh. Fiz. 69, 15–21 (June 1999)     

Methane steam reforming in an annular microchannel with Rh/Al2O3 catalyst

Regularities of methane conversion in the presence of water steam were obtained experimentally while activating chemical conversions on the inner convex wall of an annular microchannel. The steam methane reforming was done on the Rh/Al₂O₃ nanocatalyst with the heat applied through the microchannel gap from the outer wall. Concentrations of the products of chemical reactions in the outlet gas mixture are measured at different temperatures of the outer microchannel wall. The range of channel wall temperatures at which the ratio of hydrogen and carbon oxide in the outlet mixture grows substantially is determined. Data on the composition of methane conversion products for the ratio H₂O/CH₄ = 1.77 and the activation energy of methane steam reforming at reactor outer wall temperatures of up to 880°C are obtained. The effect of the radiation heat exchange and the external diffuse limitation on the rate of chemical conversions in methane steam reforming in an annular microchannel with external heat supply is determined.     

微通道内给定壁面热流的气体换热研究

本文利用实施给定热流边界条件的DSMC方法,对短通道内给定壁面热流边界条件下的气体换热情况进行了模拟.结果表明,壁面热流密度增大导致通道内压力分布非线性程度增加.随着热流密度的增大,截面速度分布趋于平缓,滑移速度增大.给定热流密度的通道壁面温度与气流截面平均温度的差值沿程增大,温度梯度沿程下降,气体稀薄性增大时,通道换热减弱.     

Turbulent premixed hydrogen/air flame-wall interaction with heterogeneous surface reactions

A premixed ${\mathrm{H}}_2$/air flame impinging onto a flat surface in statistically stationary state is studied for both reactive and inert wall cases to gain insights into the effects of the heterogeneous surface reactions. Direct numerical simulation (DNS) results with detailed gas-phase chemistry and surface adsorption and desorption mechanisms indicate differences in the flame front topology and near-wall flame dynamics between these two cases. In the reactive surface case, gas-phase free radicals are inclined to be adsorbed with much reduced near-wall concentration. Consequently, the gas-phase heat release rate (HRR) close to the wall decreases as well because of the low availability of free radicals. However, extra heat released from the reactive surface partially compensates for such difference. Moreover, wall reactions will intensify the turbulent fluctuations of the wall temperature and wall heat flux, while for these two cases the mean temperature profile along the flame propagating direction remains similar.     

Heat exchange at laminar flow in rectangular channels

Numerical modeling of heat exchange at a laminar stationary and pulsatile flow in rectangular channels with different aspect ratios of side lengths γ has been carried out by a finite difference method for two boundary conditions: a constant wall temperature and a constant heat flux density on the wall. For the boundary condition of the first kind, the similarity of distributions of the heat flux density and shear stress on the walls over the channel perimeter has been established. The reasons for a nonmonotonous dependence of the initial thermal interval length on γ are discussed. For the boundary condition of the second kind, the difference of the Nusselt number averaged over the perimeter at γ → 0 from its value for a flow in a flat channel has been explained. An increase in the Nusselt number averaged over the perimeter and the period of oscillations has been revealed for a pulsatile flow in the quasi-stationary regime at large amplitudes of the oscillations of the velocity averaged over the cross section.     

Mechanistic study of the reaction of methyl peroxy radical (CH3O2) with formaldehyde (CH2O)

ABSTRACT

A direct dynamic study on the reactions of CH₃O₂?+?CH₂O was carried out over the temperature range of 300–1500?K. All stationary points were calculated with the M06-2X/6-311++G(d,p) level of theory and identified for local minimum. The energetic parameters were refined at QCISD (T)/cc-pVTZ and CCSD (T)/cc-pVTZ levels of theory. Three channels were explored and a reaction of hydrogen abstraction from CH₂O by CH₃O₂ was identified as dominant channel which involves the formation of a prereactive complex in the entrance channel. The rate coefficient of the dominant channel was calculated with TST and TST/Eck and the Eckart tunnelling effect is only important over the lower temperature region. The calculated rate coefficient of the dominant channel has positive temperature dependence and agrees reasonably with the available literature data.     

离散发热器件基于(火积)耗散率最小和最高温度最小的构形优化比较

建立了导热基座上圆柱体离散发热器件的三维湍流散热模型,基于构形理论,考虑空气变物性及可压缩性和黏性耗散,研究了器件材料的热导率、热源强度和流体流速对器件最高温度、基于(火积)耗散定义的当量热阻和平均Nu数的影响.结果表明:在总发热功率一定的条件下,以器件最高温度和当量热阻为性能指标进行热设计,均存在最优热源强度分布使得散热性能最优.当各热源强度相同且热源热导率小于基座热导率时,提高热源热导率可明显改善散热性能;将热源热导率沿流动方向从低到高布置可降低器件最高温度,而将热源热导率均匀布置可使当量热阻最小.所得结果可为实际热设计中不同材质和不同发热率的电子器件最优布置提供理论支撑.