Heat transfer performance of a pulsating heat pipe charged with acetone-based mixtures

Abstract

Pulsating heat pipes (PHPs) are used as high efficiency heat exchangers, and the selection of working fluids in PHPs has a great impact on the heat transfer performance. This study investigates the thermal resistance characteristics of the PHP charged with acetone-based binary mixtures, where deionized water, methanol and ethanol were added to and mixed with acetone, respectively. The volume mixing ratios were 2:1, 4:1 and 7:1, and the heating power ranged from 10 to 100 W with filling ratios of 45, 55, 62 and 70%. At a low filling ratio (45%), the zeotropic characteristics of the binary mixtures have an influence on the heat transfer performance of the PHP. Adding water, which has a substantially different boiling point compared with that of acetone, can significantly improve the anti-dry-out ability inside the PHP. At a medium filling ratio (55%), the heat transfer performance of the PHP is affected by both phase transition characteristics and physical properties of working fluids. At high heating power, the thermal resistance of the PHP with acetone–water mixture is between that with pure acetone and pure water, whereas the thermal resistance of the PHP with acetone–methanol and acetone–ethanol mixtures at mixing ratios of 2:1 and 4:1 is less than that with the corresponding pure fluids. At high filling ratios (62 and 70%), the heat transfer performance of the PHP is mainly determined by the properties of working fluids that affects the flow resistance. Thus, the PHP with acetone–methanol and acetone–ethanol mixtures that have a lower flow resistance shows better heat transfer performance than that with acetone–water mixture.