Corrugated Plate Heat Exchanger Research Articles

Thermal performance comparison of vertical and diagonal flow configurations in corrugated plate heat exchanger

Thermal performance comparison of vertical and diagonal flow configurations in corrugated plate heat exchanger

Effect of Chevron Angles on the Thermal Performance of Corrugated Plate Heat Exchanger (CPHEs)

Corrugated plate heat exchangers (CPHEs) possess a greater surface area for heat transfer and a heightened level of turbulence as a result of the corrugations. This study presents an experimental analysis comparing the thermal performance of a flat plate heat exchanger and a corrugated plate heat exchanger (CPHE) with varied corrugation angles. The analysis was conducted using water as the test fluid. The comprehensive testing has been carried out on CPHEs with different chevron angles (β) of 30°/30°, 45°/45°, and 60°/60°. Experimental data is collected under steady- state conditions, with a single phase (water-water) system, covering Reynolds numbers (Re) ranging from 900 to 1250. The test fluid's mass flow rate, ranging from 0.05 to 0.16 kilograms per second, is measured together with the accompanying steady state temperatures. Each plate was equipped with four thermocouple sensors to detect the bulk temperature of the cold and hot fluids at the intake and output. The performance was evaluated using both parallel and counterflow configurations. Experimental observations are utilized to estimate the temperature difference (∆T) between the inlet and output streams, the logarithmic mean temperature difference (LMTD), and the exergy (E). The measured ∆T and E values for corrugation angles (30°, 45°, and 60°) of CPHE were compared to those of flat plate heat exchangers. For corrugation angles of 30°, 45°, and 60°, the values of ∆T and E (efficiency) increase as the mass flow rate of the fluid increases. An increase in the corrugation angle leads to an increase in turbulence in the flow, which in turn enhances heat transmission. In addition, the thermal effectiveness (ε) was calculated using the NTU method and compared for all of the plates. Key Words: Corrugated plate heat exchanger, Thermal performance, Chevron angle, heat transfer coefficient.

Optimization of Nanofluid Concentration for Energy Intensification in Corrugated Plate Type Heat Exchanger

The overall heat transfer coefficient of the heat exchanger will improve with an increase in the flow rate and concentration of nanofluid. But beyond an optimum nanoparticle concentration, the overall effectiveness seems to decrease due to an increase in pressure drop that consequently leads to an increase in pumping power. The novelty of the present work is to find the optimum concentration of CuO-Water nanofluid that exhibits the optimum heat transfer rate and global minimum pumping power, using both experimental and numerical study. The cold nanofluid and hot water entered the counter currently at 303.15 and 333.15 K respectively in the corrugated plate heat exchanger. It was observed from the experimental and numerical results that the values of overall heat transfer coefficient and pressure drop were increased monotonically (454–710 W/(m2-K) and 6–133 Pa respectively), with the increment in the concentration and flow rates of the nanofluid. Because of this trend, it was challenging to figure out the optimum nanofluid concentration using these parameters. Later, a procedure was presented to obtain an optimum concentration of nanofluid, to reduce the hot stream temperature by 288.15 K. The hydraulic power exhibited a global minimum at an optimum concentration of 0.5 vol% of nanofluid.

Investigation on the thermal-fluidic characteristics of ice slurry in sinusoidal corrugated plate heat exchangers

The sinusoidal plate heat exchangers (SCPHEs) using ice slurry as coolant have a critical role for building air conditioning. However, the thermal-hydraulic properties of ice slurry in SCPHEs are still unclear. Therefore, its flow and heat transfer performances in SCPHEs are studied using Euler-Euler model in this paper. The results show that with increasing corrugation pitch (P), the velocity of the mainstream direction and the flow dead zone decrease. As enlarging the corrugation amplitude (H), the low-velocity flow zone and flow dead zone increase. The average resistance coefficient (fave) of ice slurry reduces with increasing P and volume flow rate. When volume flow rate is between 0.144 m3/h and 1.44 m3/h, fave decreases more significantly than other stages. In addition, fave increases with increasing H and ice concentration (αin). The mass transfer of ice particles is increased at higher H and smaller P. The average Nusselt number (Nuave) of ice slurry, heat transfer rate (Qw) and total heat transfer coefficient (U) of SCPHEs increase as enlarging H, αin and volume flow rate, and decrease with increasing P. While the U and Qw are less affected by ice particle concentration. In addition, the empirical correlations of fave and Nuave in SCPHEs are developed.

Numerical investigation of thermal-hydraulics characteristics of cross-flow corrugated plate heat exchanger for lithium-cooled space nuclear reactor

The utilization of a lithium-cooled nuclear power supply system in conjunction with the He-Xe Brayton power system has great potential for providing power for space exploration missions. This is primarily attributed to its notable characteristics, such as high energy density, substantial output power, long-duration operation cycle, and little vulnerability to environmental factors. One of the salient concerns that necessitates attention is the phenomenon of heat transfer occurring between liquid lithium and a mixture of helium and xenon (He-Xe). The Vertical Cross-Flow Corrugated Plate Heat Exchanger (VC-CPHE) constructed from W-alloy possesses several advantages in space reactor applications compared to other heat exchangers. These include its compact design, which allows for a large heat exchange surface, as well as its ability to shield gamma-ray radiation. This paper investigates the thermal hydraulic properties of the VC-CPHE internal heat transfer medium using Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) techniques. The results indicate that, due to the similar flow channel structure of Li and He-Xe, there are similarities in terms of flow direction and periodic distribution of parameters. Nevertheless, due to the distinct thermophysical properties and operational parameters, these materials demonstrate notable disparities in temperature boundary layers, local thermal resistance, and other relevant factors. Furthermore, the optimization of VC-CPHE involves a balancing act between enhancing heat transfer efficacy and minimizing flow resistance. The VC-CPHE demonstrates optimal balanced performance when the inlet cross-angle is set at 45°. In comparison to Li, He-Xe exhibits elevated levels of thermal resistance and pressure loss. Hence, in the investigation of optimizing the corrugation pitch and inlet cross-angle, the optimal balanced size of corrugation pitch is 12 mm and inlet cross-angle is 45° on He-Xe side is used as the final result. An increase in the inlet temperature difference of the heat exchanger leads to a slight decrease in the heat transfer coefficient, but an overall improvement in heat transfer. On the basis of obtaining the flow and heat transfer characteristics inside VC-CPHE, the effects of inlet cross-angle, corrugation pitch, and inlet temperature difference on the performance of VC-CPHE are discussed. The findings derived from the present study provide valuable insights for the future design and optimization of VC-CPHE systems in megawatt-class nuclear power deep space exploration spacecraft, particularly in relation to internal heat transfer.

Liquid Natural Gas Cold Energy Recovery for Integration of Sustainable District Cooling Systems: A Thermal Performance Analysis

This paper investigates the heat transfer properties of liquefied natural gas (LNG) in a corrugated plate heat exchanger and explores its application in cold energy recovery for enhanced energy efficiency. The study aims to integrate this technology into a 500 MW gas-fired power plant and a district cooling system to contribute to sustainable city development. Using computational fluid dynamics simulations and experimental validation, the heat transfer behaviour of LNG in the corrugated plate heat exchanger is examined, emphasising the significance of the gas film on the channel wall for efficient heat transfer between LNG and water/ethylene glycol. The study analyses heat exchange characteristics below and above the critical point of LNG. Below the critical point, the LNG behaves as an incompressible fluid, whereas above the critical point, the compressible supercritical state enables a substantial energy recovery and temperature rise at the outlet, highlighting the potential for cold energy recovery. The results demonstrate the effectiveness of cold energy recovery above the critical point, leading to significant energy savings and improved efficiency compared to conventional systems. Optimal operational parameters, such as the number of channels and flow rate ratios, are identified for successful cold energy recovery. This research provides valuable insights for sustainable city planning and the transition towards low-carbon energy systems, contributing to the overall goal of creating environmentally friendly and resilient urban environments.

Numerical analysis of the flow and heat transfer characteristics of oil-gas-water three-phase fluid in corrugated plate heat exchanger

The heat exchanger is the key device for waste heat recovery from oilfield wastewater, which is an oil, water, gas mixture. Therefore, this paper aims to numerically investigate the flow and heat transfer performance of the corrugated plate heat exchanger by using the oil-gas-water three-phase mixture as the working flowing. The multi-fluid Eulerian framework along with the population balance model is adopted and validated first. Then the effects of different factors on the flow and heat transfer performance of a corrugated channel are studied. The results indicate that the gas accumulation on the wall will deteriorate the local heat transfer performance of the corrugated channel. Increasing the inlet gas content could enhance the gas holdup near walls and decrease the local heat transfer performance, as well as the comprehensive heat transfer performance (PEF) of the corrugated channel. The corrugation height remarkably influences the average Nu and pressure drop of the corrugated channel. When the Re is small (Re < 3000), the corrugated plate channel with a large corrugation height exhibits the best heat transfer performance; however, when Re is large, the heat transfer decreases with the rise in the corrugation height. Besides, the results demonstrate that the inlet gas bubble size has almost no influence on the heat and flow performance of the present corrugated plate sewage heat exchanger.

The Experimental Investigation of Heat Transfer Properties and Pressure Drop of a Corrugated Plate Heat Exchanger Using a Chemically Synthesised Zinc Oxide/Alkaline Water Nano Fluid

An experiment is performed to study the effects of chemically synthesized Zinc Oxide-Alkaline/water nanofluid on the pressure drop and heat convection properties of a corrugated plate heat exchanger. Nanofluids are chemically synthesised ZnO nanoparticles with diameters ranging from 200 nm to 99% purity. The weight and Reynolds number of these particles are studied to define the heat transfer properties of the finished products. The heat transfer characteristics of chemically produced ZnO are examined as a work of weight percentage and Reynolds number. In addition, the effect of adding nanoparticles to alkaline water on heat transfer coefficient is studied. The effect of increasing the nanoparticle weight concentrations and Reynolds number on the heat transfer characteristics of chemically produced ZnO-Alkaline/Water nano fluid is investigated. The results show that increasing the weight concentration of nanofluid in the corrugated plate heat exchanger enhances the heat transfer properties. At 0.2%, 0.6%, and 1.0% weight fractions of nanoparticles, the highest argumentation of the nanofluid heat transfer rate is approximately 8.6%, 16.7%, and 29.4%, respectively.

Infrared thermography observations of crystallization fouling in a plate heat exchanger

Heat exchanger performance is significantly reduced in the presence of impurities in one or both fluid streams, frequently by deposits of inversely soluble salts. Accordingly, immense efforts were and still are spent to combat, predict, and investigate such fouling problems to mitigate the reduction of heat transfer performance. In this study, calcium carbonate crystallization fouling in a corrugated plate heat exchanger was investigated. Fouling was monitored using temperature and flow measurements, and, for the first time, coupled with infrared thermography observations. We show a clear and measurable local difference between clean and fouled conditions, regardless of operating conditions. Infrared measurements of temperature permit conclusions about flow distribution and the spatial location of areas with severe fouling. Compared to the clean state, completely skewed isotherms after fouling point out channel blockage and flow obstructions, resulting in large scale flow re-distribution within the channel. The presented results exhibit a clear benefit of this approach for heat exchanger fouling studies and serve as a foundation for future research of dynamic operation, transient response, and computational models.

Combined Energetic and Exergetic Performance Analysis of Air Bubbles Injection into a Plate Heat Exchanger: An Experimental Study

This paper aims to give a comprehensive energetic-exergetic performance analysis on the impacts of injecting-submillimeter of air bubbles into both sides of cold and hot water streams before the entrance port of a corrugated plate heat exchanger (C-PHE) having ten plates within counterflow configuration. Hence, optimize the energy and exergy effectiveness at different operating conditions for counter and parallel fluid flow configurations. Hot streams were studied in seven flow rates ranging from 280 L/h to 880 L/h with a regular step of 100 L/h, and constant hot water temperature and cold-water stream of 50 °C and 290 L/h, respectively. Hence, the air was discharged with four flow rates ranging between 150 and 840 L/h. The obtained results showed the vital role of the ABI technique in enhancing the NTU and effectiveness by 59% and 18.6%, respectively, for CWS. The entropy generation was reduced to 0.038 W/K and the augmentation entropy generation number to 0.087 at the low airflow rate for CWS, which are the main parameters for evaluating the EGM. These two parameters increase the Witte-Shamsundar-efficiency to a maximum value of 98.6% at the same operating conditions. Moreover, the exergy effectiveness was enhanced to a maximum value of 80.9% at a high ABI flow rate and low volumetric rate of the hot stream at CWS. The thermo-economic assessment has been carried out, which revelers the positive effects of ABI on the combined energetic and exergetic performance on both sides, i.e., hot and cold sides.

Effect of plate spacing and inclination angle over the thermal performance of plate heat exchanger working with novel stabilized polar solvent-based silicon carbide nanofluid

In this work, the overall thermal performance of a commercial corrugated plate heat exchanger has been conducted for the first time by varying the three different plate corrugated angles (30°, 45°, 60°) and variable plate spacing (from 5 mm to 20 mm) working with polar solvent-based novel Silicon carbide (SiC)/DI Water nanosuspension as a coolant by focusing potential industrial application. This study aimed to identify the enhancement in thermal performance of plate heat exchanger by evaluating its overall heat transfer coefficient, pressure drop, pumping power, and exergetic efficiency by utilizing SiC/DI water nanofluid of varying volume concentration (0.20 %, 0.40 %, 0.60 %, 0.80 %, 1.00 %, 1.20 %, and 1.40 %) at ambient condition (T0 = 27 ° C), and fixed volumetric flow rate (3 L/min) for both (nanofluid and milk) sides. From the experimental results, the optimum volume concentration for the coolant was found as 0.60 %, which yields a significant enhancement in the overall heat transfer coefficient ratio by approximately 51 %, 42 %, and 38 % for 60°, 45°, and 30° corrugated plate angle respectively. The significant enhancement for 0.6 % of optimum volume concentration and 5 mm plate spacing has been reported as the best possible option at which the pumping power ratio, performance index ratio, and exergetic efficiency ratio attained the highest enhancements.

NUMERICAL AND EXPERIMENTAL ANALYSES OF FLOW AND HEAT TRANSFER CHARACTERISTICS IN A CHEVRON-TYPE CORRUGATED PLATE HEAT EXCHANGER WITH GRAPHENE NANOFLUID

NUMERICAL AND EXPERIMENTAL ANALYSES OF FLOW AND HEAT TRANSFER CHARACTERISTICS IN A CHEVRON-TYPE CORRUGATED PLATE HEAT EXCHANGER WITH GRAPHENE NANOFLUID

Performance prediction for modified design of dew point evaporative cooler for air cooling

ABSTRACT Traditional air conditioning systems use lot of energy; thus, dew point evaporative air-cooling systems could be a good alternative. Many experts studied the impact of constructional and operating characteristics on Maisotsenko cycle (M-cycle) to improve its performance. Cooler performance is influenced by the heat exchanger. Heat exchangers were constructed using flat and corrugated plates. The present study proposes the use of geometrically modified trapezoidal corrugated plates for counter flow heat exchanger, which consists of alternate air and water flow passageways. The numerical model is developed to predict the performance under variety of inlet air conditions and channel dimensions. In the standard range of incoming air properties such as relative humidity, the performance parameters assist in making cooler recommendations. Comparison and validation of simulation results are done with published experimental data for corrugated and trapezoidal corrugated plate heat exchangers. For trapezoidal corrugated plates, simulation findings revealed 10% increase in wet bulb efficiency and 7% increase in dew point efficiency over corrugated plates. The efficiency of wet bulb and dew point decreases as channel gap widens. For trapezoidal corrugated plates, the larger channel spacing minimises pressure drop.

Numerical study on novel airfoil corrugated plate heat exchanger: A comparison with commercial type and geometrical parameter analysis

• Symmetric airfoil is used for PHE design for the first time. • CFD simulation is validated with a previous experimental. • New type of PHE has less pressure drop than commercial type while maintaining the same amount of heat transfer. • Effects of geometrical parameters of plate heat exchanger on performance was numerically studied. • Airfoil PHE is a potential alternative to commercial type. Utilizing an effective corrugation shape in plate heat exchanger (PHE) results in a substantial increase in thermal performance and a more compact design for these devices. This article presents, for the first time in the literature, an innovative PHE design that employs symmetric airfoil profile corrugation (airfoil corrugated PHE). As a consequence of the airfoil corrugation, unique flow channel is formed inside the PHE, which results in lower pressure drop while maintaining the equivalent heat transfer rate as the commonly used commercial sinusoidal PHE. In order to get a comprehensive understanding of the performance of airfoil corrugated PHE, essential parameters such as corrugated angle, corrugated pitch, mirror arrangement, and airfoil profile were examined over Reynolds number ranges of 4,600–8,400. Compared to sinusoidal corrugation, the innovative PHE has roughly 17% reduced pressure drop while keeping the same amount of heat transfer, as determined by a computational analysis of thermal and hydraulic parameters. 60° was the optimal corrugated angle, demonstrating a 10% increase in overall heat transfer coefficient (OHTC) compared to both 30° and 90°. In addition, the NACA 0030 airfoil profile obtained the highest thermal performance, with an OHTC that was roughly 12% greater than that of the NACA 0020 and NACA 0025 profiles. Nonetheless, as one of the geometrical parameters changes, the pressure drop is proportionate to the increase in heat transfer. NACA 0030 saw a pressure drop increase of around 33.7%, the greatest of any case. The geometrical parametric study indicates that the ideal configuration of the innovative PHE consists of NACA 0030 airfoil profile, chevron angle of 60° degrees, single mirror arrangement, and corrugated pitch of 3.14 mm, as shown by the maximum performance of evaluation criterion (PEC) value of 1.08.

Review on Thermal Performance of Nanofluids With and Without Magnetic Fields in Heat Exchange Devices

Addition of nanoparticles into a fluid can improve the heat transfer performance of the base fluid in heat exchangers. In this work, the preparation method and process of nanofluids are introduced, and thermal properties of nanofluids, such as thermal conductivity and viscosity, are discussed deeply. This paper summarizes various theoretical models of thermal conductivity and viscosity of nanofluids. A comprehensive literature survey on applications and limitations of nanofluids has been compiled. This paper also aims to review the natural and forced convective heat transfer characteristics of nanofluids with and without magnetic fields. The discussion for the natural convective heat transfer of nanofluids focuses on the heat transfer performance of non-conventional enclosures and electric heaters. The effects on heat transfer due to variations of heated walls are also investigated. Specific applications of nanofluids in a tube with trapezoidal ribs, double-tube heat exchangers, and plate heat exchangers have been reviewed and presented in a discussion about forced convective heat transfer. The previous results show that the inlet temperature of nanofluids obviously affects the heat transfer characteristics of double-tube heat exchangers, whereas a multi-walled carbon nanotube–water nanofluid shows significant advantages in plate heat exchangers. Finally, this paper studies natural convective heat transfer of magnetic fluids in a square cavity and forced convection heat transfer in a straight tube and a corrugated structure under the action of magnetic fields. It is found that the heat transfer performance of an Fe3O4–water nanofluid is enhanced when a magnetic field is applied to the corrugated plate heat exchangers, and the pressure drop can be reduced by around 10%. It is recommended that natural convection of magnetic fluids needs to be investigated experimentally in a real cavity and a corrugated channel under the influence of a magnetic field. In addition, studies of alternating magnetic field are recommended to reveal any improvements of thermal performance of magnetic fluids in heat exchange devices. This review puts forward an effective solution for improvement of the thermal performance of heat transfer equipment and serves as a basic reference for applications of nanofluids in heat transfer fields.

Numerical investigation of a plate-type steam generator for a small modular nuclear reactor

A numerical feasibility study was conducted to investigate the thermal–hydraulic characteristics of a steam generator with corrugated plates for a small modular reactor. Accordingly, a one-dimensional thermal–hydraulic analysis code was developed based on the existing state-of-the-art thermal–hydraulic models and correlations for corrugated plate heat exchangers. Subsequently, the pressure loss, heat transfer, and instability characteristics of the steam generator with corrugated plates were investigated according to the chevron angle and mass flux. Additionally, the characteristics of rectangular and disk-type corrugated plate steam generators with equivalent heat transfer areas were analyzed. The steam generator with disk-type corrugated plates exhibited better performance in terms of pressure loss and heat transfer rate than the rectangular type. In addition, when the mass flux decreased from the onset of boiling points, reverse gradients of the total pressure change were observed in both types. Thus, it was confirmed that Ledinegg instability could occur in the steam generator with corrugated plates. However, it was dependent on the chevron angle, and the optimal chevron angle to minimize instability was 45° under the conditions of the present analysis.

Experimental investigation on frequency pulsation effects on a single pass plate heat exchanger performance

AbstractThis paper investigates combined heat transfer improvement methods. These methods include introducing pulsating flow, adding nanofluids, and manipulating the flow's characteristics in a corrugated plate heat exchanger. Tests are carried out with multi‐walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT), graphene nanoplate (GNP), and a mixture of GNP and MWCNT meeting the requirement of 0.01% nanofluids volume fraction and exposed to pulsation. Results demonstrated that the use of pulsating frequencies from 0 to 30 Hz of GNP‐water, MIX nanofluids–water, and MWCNT–water nanofluids with a constant concentration of 0.01 wt% leads to a significant improvement in heat transfer. Using pure water at frequency f = 0 Hz as a benchmark, the Nusselt number of the mixture nanofluid increases by 15.2%, 27.5%, 40.4%, and 52.8% with the increase of frequency pulsation from 0 to 30 Hz with a slight effect on the pressure‐drop at this low used constant nanofluid concentration = 0.01%. The highest Nusselt number value for GNP‐water nanofluid improved by an amount of 58.3% at the highest frequency compared with pure water at f = 0 Hz.

Numerical analysis of thermal performance of heat exchanger: Different plate structures and fluids

Due to compact size, high power density, low cost and short construction time, the small modular reactors are considered as one of the candidate reactors, in which the power generation system is important with a compact heat exchanger for modular construction. Therefore, the effect of plate structure and nature of the working fluid on the thermal performance of plate heat exchanger are analyzed for the design of compact and efficient heat exchanger. The heat transfer rate, temperature counters, velocity vectors, and pressure drop have been optimized and investigated using FLUENT. The Nusselt number has been calculated for the corrugated and flat plate heat exchanger to validate the convective heat transfer. The numerical results are agreed well with correlation within deviation of ~5-7%. The performance of heat exchanger can be improved by controlling the mass-flow rate, and temperature of working fluid. The corrugation plate heat ex-changer increases the heat transfer rate 20% and effectiveness 23%, respectively, as compare to flat plate heat exchanger when the working fluid is water. In the case of air, heat transfer rate, and effectiveness are about 10% and 9%, respectively. The results show that the corrugated plate heat exchanger is more effective than the flat plate heat exchanger because corrugation pattern enhances the turbulence of fluids, which further increase heat transfer rate and coefficient. The selection of the working fluid and structure of the plate must be considered carefully for efficient and compact design of heat exchanger.

Characteristics of heat transfer and pressure drop in a corrugated plate heat exchanger with chemically synthesized ZnO/sparkling water nanofluids

Characteristics of heat transfer and pressure drop in a corrugated plate heat exchanger with chemically synthesized ZnO/sparkling water nanofluids

NUMERICAL INVESTIGATION OF THERMOHYDRAULIC CHARACTERISTICS OF A GASKETED PLATE HEAT EXCHANGER

Present study focuses on the investigation of thermohydraulic characteristics of a gasketed plate heat exchanger (GPHE) through theoretical predictions and numerical analysis using ANSYS FLUENT. The analysis is divided into three parts. The first part of the study determines the correlation suitable for the GPHE based on the chevron angle and flow conditions. The second part investigates the comparison between a corrugated plate heat exchanger and aflat plate for the same effective area of heat transfer. Simulations were run for 200 ≤ Re ≤ 1000 on the hot side and Re = 200 was kept constant on the cold side. It was found out that there was an increase in heat transfer by about 262.866% for Re = 1000. The final part investigates how chevron angle affects the rate of heat transfer and turbulence intensity. Observations were made for chevron angles of 30°, 45°, and 60°. It was found that the heat transfer increases as the chevron angle increases with an increase of 35.69% from 30° to 60°.