Analysis of the thermal performance of a flat-plate type rotary regenerator depending on the matrix material

Abstract

A rotary regenerator made of polymer can reduce the operation cost and maintenance time of a thermal system due to its lightweight and high corrosion-resistivity, compared to a metal regenerator. This study investigates the heat transfer performance of a flat-plate type rotary regenerator made of polymer or metal through a numerical simulation. The effects of the matrix material, rotary generator's flow channel and wall thicknesses on the temperature profiles of the fluid channel and matrix wall were analyzed. The calculation results were compared with the theoretical effectiveness–number of transfer units relation and were verified. A sensitivity analysis on the effectiveness was conducted to show that the thermal mass of the matrix had more than 7 times higher influence on the thermal performance of a regenerator compared to the thermal conductivity of the matrix. Finally, correlations of Nusselt number as functions of the Reynolds number, non-dimensional matrix wall thickness, and non-dimensional thermal mass parameters were developed for the hot and the cold periods. Deviation of Nusselt number between the correlation and CFD simulation was found to be less than ±13%.