Transient heat transfer performance of molten salt tubular receiver

Abstract

Abstract Transient heat transfer performance of molten salt tubular receiver was experimentally investigated under various unsteady conditions. During the transient heat transfer process caused by the variation of heat flux or flow rate, the increasing rates of the outlet temperature and wall temperature first increased and then decreased. The receiver inner energy change played very important role in the transient process, and its energy percentage remarkably decreased from a high value to zero. Because of receiver inner energy change, the transient absorption efficiency can be higher than 1 just after heat flux decreases or flow rate rises. As the flow velocity kept constant, the dimensionless temperature evolution during the transient process was similar under different fluid temperature, flow velocity and energy flux variation conditions. As the flow velocity changed, the convective heat transfer coefficient inside the receiver varied, and then the dimensionless temperature evolution remarkably changed.