Experimental Analysis of Fin and Tube Heat Exchanger in Heating and Cooling Mode

Abstract

The paper provides the results of experimental tests of a wavy fin and tube heat exchanger used to heat (cool) air in a ventilation system when the wavy fin of the heat exchanger is dry and wet. The experimental tests, performed in the range of 1000<Re<4500 of the Reynolds number, determined the dependency of the heat transfer coefficient on the amount of supplied air with the varying geometry of the heat exchanger (the number of tube rows, the distance between fins, the thickness of the fin and the diameter of the tube). The experimental tests were performed on 9 heat exchangers in heating mode (dry fin) and 6 heat exchangers in cooling mode (wet fin). The ratio of heat transfer coefficient values when the fin is dry and wet varies from 0.79 to 1.12. After processing the results of the experimental tests, equations defining the dependency of the heat transfer coefficient on the amount of air and varying geometric parameters of the heat exchanger were derived, based on which 86% to 88% of the results do not exceed the 10% tolerance margin and the standard deviation varies from 3.5% to 4.3%.