Modelling and simulation of heat exchange and transport in a geothermal plant

The production of energy by use of the high temperature in the earth's mantle has played an increasingly important role in recent years. However, large uncertainties concerning the conditions in the subsurface make it difficult to use power plants efficiently. An appropriate modelling and simulation of the heat exchange and transport provides a promising tool for further investigations of the process and optimisation of the productivity. Starting from the isothermal state at high temperatures, a cold fluid is injected through a borehole into a porous rock by applying a pressure difference between at least two wells. Passing the fractured rock, the water is heated at the crack interfaces. In addition to the convection of the temperature due to the water flow, the conduction of heat in the rock and the water has to be considered. The modelling approach of this coupled process is based on the Theory of Porous Media (TPM). Both, the rock and the water, are assumed to be materially incompressible and the thermal expansion is solely considered for the fluid, since the expansion of the rock is negligible for the occurring temperature differences. Furthermore, it is assumed that the subsurface is saturated with water. To solve the generated initial-boundary-value problem, the governing primary variables of the coupled model are spatially approximated by mixed finite elements and the time discretisation is carried out by an implicit Euler time-integration scheme. Since in the considered problem the convective transport is dominant, a streamline upwinding scheme is used for the numerical stabilisation to obtain non-oscillatory solutions. (© 2014 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

A finite element method for heat transfer of power‐law flow in channels with a transverse magnetic field

Heat transfer of a power‐law non‐Newtonian incompressible fluid in channels with porous walls has not been carefully studied using a proper numerical method despite a few constructions of approximate analytic solutions through the similarity transformation and perturbation method for Newtonian fluids (i.e. power‐law index being one). In this paper, we propose a finite element method for the thermal incompressible flow equations. The incompressible condition is treated by a penalty formulation. Numerical solutions are validated by comparing them with an approximate analytic solution of the Navier–Stokes equation in the Newtonian fluid case. Then, the method is used to simulate the heat transfer of various power‐law fluids. Additionally, unlike previous studies, we allow the thermal diffusivity to be a function of temperature gradient. The effect of different values of the parameters on the temperature and velocity is also discussed in this paper. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

On the flow characteristics of a geothermal plant in a heterogeneous subsurface

Due to the scarcity of fossil fuel with a simultaneous rising in global energy demand, it is important to gain access to other energy sources. Geothermal energy holds great potential, and has therefore been studied increasingly in recent years. Within the construction of a geothermal plant, a fluid is introduced via a borehole into the initially gas-filled porous rock. Due the rising pressure gradient, the fluid distributes, displaces the gas and escapes through a second borehole. The modelling approach of these processes in a heterogeneous subsurface proceeds from the Theory of Porous Media (TPM) including an elastically deformable solid, an incompressible fluid, and a gaseous phase [1]. To solve the initial-boundary-value problem, the governing primary variables of the strongly coupled three-phase model are spatially approximated by mixed finite elements, whereas the time-discretisation is carried out by an implicit Euler time-integration scheme. The goal of the presented numerical simulations is to study the specific flow characteristics in a heterogenous subsurface. (© 2012 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Numerical investigation of transient heat transfer to hydromagnetic channel flow with radiative heat and convective cooling

This present study consists of a numerical investigation of transient heat transfer in channel flow of an electrically conducting variable viscosity Boussinesq fluid in the presence of a magnetic field and thermal radiation. The temperature dependent nature of viscosity is assumed to follow an exponentially model and the system exchanges heat with the ambient following Newton’s law of cooling. The governing nonlinear equations of momentum and energy transport are solved numerically using a semi-implicit finite difference method. Solutions are presented in graphical form and given in terms of fluid velocity, fluid temperature, skin friction and heat transfer rate for various parametric values. Our results reveal that combined effect of thermal radiation, magnetic field, viscosity variation and convective cooling have significant impact in controlling the rate of heat transfer in the boundary layer region.     

Combined effects of non-uniform heat source/sink and thermal radiation on heat transfer over an unsteady stretching permeable surface

The present paper is concerned with the study of flow and heat transfer characteristics in the unsteady laminar boundary layer flow of an incompressible viscous fluid over continuously stretching permeable surface in the presence of a non-uniform heat source/sink and thermal radiation. The unsteadiness in the flow and temperature fields is because of the time-dependent stretching velocity and surface temperature. Similarity transformations are used to convert the governing time-dependent nonlinear boundary layer equations for momentum and thermal energy are reduced to a system of nonlinear ordinary differential equations containing Prandtl number, non-uniform heat source/sink parameter, thermal radiation and unsteadiness parameter with appropriate boundary conditions. These equations are solved numerically by applying shooting method using Runge–Kutta–Fehlberg method. Comparison of numerical results is made with the earlier published results under limiting cases. The effects of the unsteadiness parameter, thermal radiation, suction/injection parameter, non-uniform heat source/sink parameter on flow and heat transfer characteristics as well as on the local Nusselt number are shown graphically.     

Study of the Norton-Hoff operator coupled with the evolutive heat equation

We are interested in the study of quasistatic visco-plastic flows with thermal effects. The fluid motion is governed by the incompressible Norton-Hoff model coupled with the time-dependent heat equation where the dissipated mechanical power is the source term. The viscosity of the fluid is modeled by the non-linear Arrhenius law. The well-posedness of each decoupled system is given. The optimal regularities of the heat solution and of the scale factor are supplied. A non-linear operator describing the stand coupling is provided. The existence of a solution to the considered problem is established. We prove the compactness result of the set solutions.     

The effect of variable viscosity on MHD viscoelastic fluid flow and heat transfer over a stretching sheet

An analysis has been carried out to study the momentum and heat transfer characteristics in an incompressible electrically conducting non-Newtonian boundary layer flow of a viscoelastic fluid over a stretching sheet. The partial differential equations governing the flow and heat transfer characteristics are converted into highly non-linear coupled ordinary differential equations by similarity transformations. The effect of variable fluid viscosity, Magnetic parameter, Prandtl number, variable thermal conductivity, heat source/sink parameter and thermal radiation parameter are analyzed for velocity, temperature fields, and wall temperature gradient. The resultant coupled highly non-linear ordinary differential equations are solved numerically by employing a shooting technique with fourth order Runge–Kutta integration scheme. The fluid viscosity and thermal conductivity, respectively, assumed to vary as an inverse and linear function of temperature. The analysis reveals that the wall temperature profile decreases significantly due to increase in magnetic field parameter. Further, it is noticed that the skin friction of the sheet decreases due to increase in the Magnetic parameter of the flow characteristics.     

The optimal shape of a pipe

In shape optimization, recently the question arose, whether or not the cylindrical pipe has the optimal shape for the transport of an incompressible fluid. In this short note, a proof will be presented that a cylindrical pipe with Poiseuille’s flow inside indeed is optimal for the transportation of an incompressible fluid under the criterion “energy dissipated by the fluid.” The proof reduces the problem to the minimization of a two-dimensional Dirichlet’s integral. This simpler problem can be solved with a symmetrization argument.     

Numerical simulation of Darcy–Forchheimer flow of third grade liquid with Cattaneo–Christov heat flux model

The main purpose of this research is to evaluate the impact of Darcy–Forchheimer flow in an incompressible third‐grade liquid through Cattaneo–Christov heat flux approach. The Cattaneo–Christov heat flux theory is adopted to govern the mathematical expression of energy, which involves the heat flux relaxation time chracteristics. Time‐dependent thermal conductivity is accounted. The steady problem is reduced to ordinary differential equations via suitable transformation. Numerical solutions for the resulting flow expressions have been computed with the help of Euler's explicit technique. Impact of influential variables on the velocity, temperature and skin‐friction coefficient have been demonstrated and discussed through graphs. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Well-posedness of thermal boundary layer equation in two-dimensional incompressible heat conducting flow with analytic datum

In this paper, we study the well-posedness of the thermal boundary layer equation in two-dimensional incompressible heat conducting flow. The thermal boundary layer equation describes the behavior of thermal layer and viscous layer for the two-dimensional incompressible viscous flow with heat conduction in the small viscosity and heat conductivity limit. When the initial datum are analytic, with respect to the tangential variable of the boundary, and without the monotonicity condition of the tangential velocity, by using the Littlewood-Paley theory, we obtain the local-in-time existence and uniqueness of solution to this thermal boundary layer problem.     

Calculation of conjugate heat transfer problem with volumetric heat generation using the Galerkin method

A mathematical model of fluid flow across a rod bundle with volumetric heat generation has been built. The rods are heated with volumetric internal heat generation. To construct the model, a volume average technique (VAT) has been applied to momentum and energy transport equations for a fluid and a solid phase to develop a specific form of porous media flow equations. The model equations have been solved with a semi-analytical Galerkin method. The detailed velocity and temperature fields in the fluid flow and the solid structure have been obtained. Using the solution fields, a whole-section drag coefficient C_d and a whole-section Nusselt number Nu have also been calculated. To validate the developed solution procedure, the results have been compared to the results of a finite volume method. The comparison shows an excellent agreement. The present results demonstrate that the selected Galerkin approach is capable of performing calculations of heat transfer in a cross-flow where thermal conductivity and internal heat generation in a solid structure has to be taken into account. Although the Galerkin method has limited applicability in complex geometries, its highly accurate solutions are an important benchmark on which other numerical results can be tested.     

非一致性界面热流固耦合作用的整体求解

提出了非一致性界面热流固耦合作用整体求解的一种方法．热流体求解基于Boussinesq假设和不可压缩的Navier-Stokes方程．流体区域的运动采用任意Lagrange-Euler（ALE）方法．拟固体元方法实现流体区域的变形．使用几何非线性的热弹性动力学描述固体运动．为了保证界面处应力和传热的平衡,采用了基于Gauss积分点的数据交换方法,对热流固耦合最终形成的强非线性方程实现整体求解．数值实例分析表明该方法的健壮性和有效性．     

Numerical study of melting in an enclosure with discrete protruding heat sources

In order to explore the capability of a solid–liquid phase change material (PCM) for cooling electronic or heat storage applications, melting of a PCM in a vertical rectangular enclosure was studied. Three protruding generating heat sources are attached on one of the vertical walls of the enclosure, and generating heat at a constant and uniform volumetric rate. The horizontal walls are adiabatic. The power generated in heat sources is dissipated in PCM (n-eicosane with the melting temperature, T_m = 36 °C) that filled the rectangular enclosure. The advantage of using PCM is that it is able to absorb high amount of heat generated by heat sources due to its relatively high energy density. To investigate the thermal behaviour and thermal performance of the proposed system, a mathematical model based on the mass, momentum and energy conservation equations was developed. The governing equations are next discretised using a control volume approach in a staggered mesh and a pressure correction equation method is employed for the pressure–velocity coupling. The PCM energy equation is solved using the enthalpy method. The solid regions (wall and heat sources) are treated as fluid regions with infinite viscosity and the thermal coupling between solid and fluid regions is taken into account using the harmonic mean of the thermal conductivity method. The dimensionless independent parameters that govern the thermal behaviour of the system were next identified. After validating the proposed mathematical model against experimental data, a numerical investigation was next conducted in order to examine the thermal behaviour of the system by analyzing the flow structure and the heat transfer during the melting process, for a given values of governing parameters.     

Analytical solutions for movement of cold water thermal front in a heterogeneous geothermal reservoir

In the present study an analytical model has been presented to describe the transient temperature distribution and advancement of the thermal front generated due to the reinjection of heat depleted water in a heterogeneous geothermal reservoir. One dimensional heat transport equation in porous media with advection and longitudinal heat conduction has been solved analytically using Laplace transform technique in a semi infinite medium. The heterogeneity of the porous medium is expressed by the spatial variation of the flow velocity and the longitudinal effective thermal conductivity of the medium. A simpler solution is also derived afterwards neglecting the longitudinal conduction depending on the situation where the contribution to the transient heat transport phenomenon in the porous media is negligible. Solution for a homogeneous aquifer with constant values of the rock and fluid parameters is also derived with an aim to compare the results with that of the heterogeneous one. The effect of some of the parameters involved, on the transient heat transport phenomenon is assessed by observing the variation of the results with different magnitudes of those parameters. Results prove the heterogeneity of the medium, the flow velocity and the longitudinal conductivity to have great influence and porosity to have negligible effect on the transient temperature distribution.     

On the Optimal Design of Wall-to-Wall Heat Transport

We consider the problem of optimizing heat transport through an incompressible fluid layer. Modeling passive scalar transport by advection-diffusion, we maximize the mean rate of total transport by a divergence-free velocity field. Subject to various boundary conditions and intensity constraints, we prove that the maximal rate of transport scales linearly in the r.m.s. kinetic energy and, up to possible logarithmic corrections, as the one-third power of the mean enstrophy in the advective regime. This makes rigorous a previous prediction on the near optimality of convection rolls for energy-constrained transport. On the other hand, optimal designs for enstrophy-constrained transport are significantly more difficult to describe: we introduce a “branching” flow design with an unbounded number of degrees of freedom and prove it achieves nearly optimal transport. The main technical tool behind these results is a variational principle for evaluating the transport of candidate designs. The principle admits dual formulations for bounding transport from above and below. While the upper bound is closely related to the “background method,” the lower bound reveals a connection between the optimal design problems considered herein and other apparently related model problems from mathematical materials science. These connections serve to motivate designs. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Rotating disk flow and heat transfer through a porous medium of a non-Newtonian fluid with suction and injection

The steady flow of an incompressible viscous non-Newtonian fluid above an infinite rotating porous disk in a porous medium is studied with heat transfer. A uniform injection or suction is applied through the surface of the disk. Numerical solutions of the non-linear differential equations which govern the hydrodynamics and energy transfer are obtained. The effect of the porosity of the medium, the characteristics of the non-Newtonian fluid and the suction or injection velocity on the velocity and temperature distributions is considered. The inclusion of the three effects, the porosity, the non-Newtonian characteristics, and the suction or injection velocity together has shown some interesting effects.     

Simultaneously developing flow and heat transfer of non-Newtonian fluids in equilateral triangular duct

A numerical investigation based on the Galerkin finite element method was carried out to solve the full three-dimensional governing equations for simultaneously developing steady laminar flow and heat transfer to a purely viscous non-Newtonian fluid described by a power law model flowing in equilateral triangular ducts. Two commonly used thermal boundary conditions, constant wall temperature (T boundary condition) and constant wall heat flux both axially and peripherally (H2 boundary condition) were examined. It is shown that the Nusselt number distribution along the walls is affected appreciably by the variation of the power law index. Results are presented and discussed for a wide range of power law indices and Prandtl numbers for T and H2 boundary conditions.     

Effect of Chemical reaction on MHD flow of a visco-elastic fluid through porous medium.

The effect of heat and mass transfer on free convective flow of a visco-elastic incompressible electrically conducting fluid past a vertical porous plate through a porous medium with time dependant oscillatory permeability and suction in the presence of a uniform transverse magnetic field, heat source and chemical reaction has been studied in this paper. The novelty of the present study is to analyze the effect of chemical reaction, time dependant fluctuative suction and permeability of the medium on a visco-elastic fluid flow. It is interesting to note that presence of sink contributes to oscillatory motion leading to flow instability. Further it is remarked that presence of heat source and low rate of thermal diffusion counteract each other in the presence of reacting species.     

Effects of variable viscosity on non-Darcy MHD free convection along a non-isothermal vertical surface in a thermally stratified porous medium

An analysis is performed for non-Darcy free convection flow of an electrically conducting fluid over an impermeable vertical plate embedded in a thermally stratified, fluid saturated porous medium for the case of power-law surface temperature. The present work examines the effects of non-Darcian flow phenomena, variable viscosity, Hartmann–Darcy number and thermal stratification on free convective transport and demonstrates the variation in heat transfer prediction based on three different flow models. The wall effect on porosity variation is approximated by an exponential function. The effects of thermal dispersion and variable stagnant thermal conductivity are taken into consideration in the energy equation. The resulting non-similar system of equations is solved using a finite difference method. Results are presented for velocity, temperature profiles and local Nusselt number for representative values of different controlling parameters.     

Free convection heat and mass transfer in a power law fluid past an inclined surface with thermophoresis

The problem of heat and mass transfer in a power law, two-dimensional, laminar, boundary layer flow of a viscous incompressible fluid over an inclined plate with heat generation and thermophoresis is investigated by the characteristic function method. The governing non-linear partial differential equations describing the flow and heat transfer problem are transformed into a set of coupled non-linear ordinary differential equation which was solved using Runge–Kutta shooting method. Exact solutions for the dimensionless temperature and concentration profiles, are presented graphically for different physical parameters and for the different power law exponents 0 < n < 0.5 and for n > 0.5.