Characterization of brazed plate heat exchanger performance based on experimental and coupled heat-fluid-solid numerical simulation

Abstract

A physical and mathematical model of a complete brazed plate heat exchanger (BPHE) with three layers and two channels was presented. Experiments were conducted on the BPHE using water as the fluid, and the experimental results were compared with the simulation results in terms of heat transfer efficiency and pressure drop. An analysis of the relationship between the Nusselt number and drag factor of the BPHE at a specific Reynolds was also provided, with a focus on identifying any errors. Furthermore, the internal flow and heat transfer characteristics of the BPHE were analyzed. The thermal stress and lifetime of the BPHE at different operating temperatures were simulated by using the heat-flow-solid coupling method. The results reveal that the presence of stress concentration points and the thermal stress increases while the lifetime decreases with the rise in operating temperature. In summary, the study demonstrates that the BPHE experiences stress concentration points and their intensity varies with the working temperature, thereby affecting the overall lifetime of the BPHE.