Two-phase closed thermosiphon with grooved the evaporator section applied for low-grade energy recovery: Thermo-hydrodynamic performance and potentials

Abstract

High thermal conductivity and simple structure of two-phase closed thermosyphons (TPCTs) facilitate it extensively applied in low-grade thermal recovery, such like geothermal and solar energy exploitation. In present work, by incorporating threaded grooves into the evaporator section of the TPCTs, heat transfer performance could be significantly enhanced. Thermal transport mechanism of thermosyphons with various threaded groove structures was comprehensively investigated, and corresponding thermo-hydrodynamic performance was modelled through CFD/VOF simulations. Numerical procedures were validated well after comparison with experimental ones felled within 5.0 %. Under various heating power levels and filling ratios, heat transfer performance of thermosyphons with threaded grooves evidently surpassed that of smooth thermosyphons. Depending on delicate numerical results, critical point at 33 % filling ratio and 90 W heating power were confirmed that total thermal resistance of the grooved thermosyphon decreased almost close to 4.6 %. Furthermore, deviating from that critical point, higher heating power and lower filling ratio instead confined heat transfer performance of the threaded TPCT, which was primarily due to the rate of bubble generation and growth being significantly was slower than its detachment rate from the wall. In addition, heat and mass transfer performance of thermosyphons with threaded grooves of various pitches and apex angles were further analyzed under various conditions. Our results indicated that, when the groove apex angle turned to 90°, overall thermal transportation capability of the TPCT achieved optimal, with a decline in thermal resistance of up to 6.5 % compared to thermosyphons with smaller apex angles. Apex angle primarily affected the number of nucleation sites and the bubble detachment rate. Additionally, as the screw pitch decreased, boiling heat transfer enhancement, leading to more robust boiling heat transfer of TPCTs. Under high heating power, thermosyphons with larger screw pitch exhibited superior heat transfer performance. Overall, this innovative TPCTs with threaded grooves could be well applied in low-grade energy exploitation, particularly like as geothermal and solar energy fields.