Investigation on the flow noise propagation mechanism in pipelines of shell-and-tube heat exchangers based on synergy principle of flow and sound fields

Abstract

As major equipment for implementing technological process, Shell-and-Tube Heat Exchangers are widely used in modern industries. Because the noise propagation in pipelines in shell-and-tube heat exchangers can’t be ignored, it is a key point to investigate the transfer mechanism of sound energy in pipelines and develop high efficiency mufflers with low penalty of pressure drop. Different with the traditional method, this study is focused on the flow and sound fields synergy principle to investigate the flow noise propagation mechanism in pipelines. In this study, theoretical analysis and numerical simulation methods are coupled to investigate the pipeline noise propagation process. Based on the momentum and the energy equations in the sound field, the synergetic relationship between the flow field and the pressure gradient field is deduced, and the field synergy theory is established. The flow noise propagation process of noise in the pipeline is studied by numerical simulation. The synergy is verified by analyzing the calculating results of flow and sound fields. The results show that with the increase of synergy between flow and sound fields, the work done by the fluid on the wall increases, which means the exchange of sound energy between the wall and the fluid increases.