Abstract
Solar water heaters (SWHs) are widely used in HVAC industries as well as in households for different heating purposes. The present numerical simulation focuses on the investigation of the thermo-hydraulic performance of novel semi-arc-rib SWHs. Semi-arc-shaped ribs in the square channel of the absorber plates with different pitch and height ratios are investigated in this study. The present novel modification disturbs the boundary layers by generating vortices, and thus, enhanced fluid mixing takes place. Water with a Reynolds number (Re) ranging from 4000 to 25,000 is used as a working fluid, and a 1.0 kW/m2 heat flux is imposed on the tube wall. The results demonstrate a significant increase in the Nusselt number (Nu) as the fluid layers localize behind each rib near the absorber plates, and at the same time, the number of swirls generated inside the tube and the frictional losses both increased noticeably. To ensure the effectivity of the present novel SWH geometry, the thermo-hydraulic performance (η) for each case was calculated, and it was found that in all the cases, it was greater than unity, which signifies that the present semi-arc-rib SWH is promising and can be used in HVAC industrial and household applications.
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