Experiments on Condensation Heat Transfer Characteristics Inside a Microfin Tube with R410A

Abstract

Due to the ozone depletion and global warming potentials, some refrigerants(CFx and HCFCs) have been rapidly substituted. R410A is considered as the alternative refrigerant of R22 for the air-conditioners used a home and in industry. Experiments on the condensation heat transfer characteristics inside a smooth or a micro-fin tube with R410A are performed in this study. The test tubes 7/9.52 mm in outer diameters and 3 m in length are used. Varying the mass flux of the refrigerant and the condensation temperatures, the average heat transfer coefficients and pressure drop are investigated. It is shown that the heat transfer is enhanced and the amount of pressure drops are larger in the microfin tube than the smooth tube. From the heat transfer enhancement coefficient and the pressure penalty factor, it is found that the high heat transfer enhancement coefficients are obtained in the range of small mass flux while the penalty factors are almost equal.