Constructal Design of a Rectangular Fin in a Mixed Convective Confined Environment

Abstract

Extended surfaces or fins offer an efficient solution in many engineering situations that demand a higher heat transfer, including cooling gas-turbine components and electronic chips via internal convective flows. However, fins require a higher active surface area for higher heat transfer, which may not be always feasible in a confined environment. A feasible solution to enhance heat transfer from fins can be the use of nanofluids, which are the combination of a fluid base and nanoparticles. The main purpose of this study is, therefore, to optimize a rectangular fin intruded into the mixed convective confined space filled with a nanofluid and by means of constructal design. Here, a two-dimensional macroscopic numerical model has been developed for Al2O3–water nanofluid to investigate the heat transfer and fluid flow inside a square confined-space with an intruded rectangular fin and to optimize the fin geometry for maximizing the heat transfer using the constructal design method. The flow fields, temperature fields, heat transfer rates, and the transition from forced to mixed convection are examined for different values of Rayleigh and Reynolds numbers for various fin geometries in order to maximize the heat transfer from the fin to the surrounding nanofluid flow. The outcome of this study provides important insights into the constructal design method for the confined environment, which would be beneficial in developing novel fin geometries with enhanced and controlled heat-transfer for engineering problems, including cooling gas-turbine components and electronic chips.