Temperature discontinuities between elements of thermoacoustic devices

Abstract

Significant differences in temperatures have been observed between adjoining elements of thermoacoustic prime movers [G. W. Swift, J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 92, 1551–1563 (1992)]. A simple description of the interelement heat transfer process based on the existence of this temperature difference is given. The central assumption of this approach is that the heat transfer process is sufficiently rapid that it is completed in less than the dwell time that the fluid spends in either element. Experimental measurements of the heat transfer coefficient between elements is shown to yield results close to the prediction of this complete heat exchange theory. Predictions are also compared to those based on the heat transfer description put forward by Swift [J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 92, 1551–1563 (1992)].