High Aspect Ratio Duct Research Articles

Numerical investigation on heat transfer enhancement and turbulent flow characteristics in a high aspect ratio rectangular duct roughened by intersecting ribs with inclined ribs

In this study, the effect of intersecting ribs with inclined ribs on the heat transfer and flow characteristics of a high aspect ratio duct has been numerically investigated. The Relative roughness pitch (P/e) is 10 and the Reynolds number range from 35,700 to 72,800. ANSYS (Fluent-Workbench 18.0) software has been utilized to solve the Reynolds averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) equations with the Standard k-ε turbulence model. Three ribbed models have been used in this study. Model 1 which is a just inclined ribs, Model 2 which has a single longitudinal rib at the center with inclined ribs and Model 3 which has two longitudinal ribs at the sides. The results showed that the heat transfer rate has been enhanced when the intersecting ribs are used. Model 3 has achieved the highest overall thermal performance. The increasing in Nusselt number ratio (Nu /Nus ) for Model 3 and 2, relative to Model 1, are 13.19% and 7.03%, respectively. Consequently, the hybridizing by intersecting ribs with inclined ribs is considered as an advantageous technique to enhance the heat transfer.

Thermal hydraulic performance augmentation by high-porosity thin aluminum foams placed in high aspect ratio ducts

High porosity metal foams are known for providing high heat transfer rates, however, the concomitant higher-pressure losses have been a concern towards the realization of enhanced thermal hydraulic performance. Present study aims towards developing metal foam-based cooling configurations subjected to forced convection in a channel by employed very thin and high porosity Aluminum foams, where the goal is to achieve maximum foam volume participation in heat dissipation. To this end, a comprehensive experimental study has been carried out to investigate the effect of foam pore density (pores per inch: PPI) and channel aspect ratio (AR) on the thermal hydraulic performance of thin metal foams. High porosity (93%) thin aluminum foams with pore densities of 5, 20 and 40 PPI were studied, where the convective heat transport was facilitated through air forced through the channel. For the 40 ppi foams, three foam heights of 3.175 mm, 6.35 mm and 19 mm were tested, for 20 ppi foams, two foam heights of 6.35 mm and 19 mm were tested, and for the 5 ppi foams, one height of 19 mm was tested. These three different foam heights yielded in channel ARs of 16:1, 8:1 and 8:3, respectively. Heat transfer gain due to metal foams was evaluated against a geometrically identical smooth channel as well as with the Dittus-Boelter correlation for developed turbulent flow in circular ducts. Experimental data reveals that, for a given AR, an increase in pore-density resulted in both, increase in heat transfer as well as pressure drop. Amongst all three channel configurations, the 40 ppi foams had highest heat transfer, where the gain with respect to smooth channel for Re 5000 was ~21, 12 and 9.5 times, for 8:3, 8:1 and 16:1 channels respectively. Increase in channel AR (thinner foams) demonstrated an increase in heat transfer performance for a given pumping power. The thermal hydraulic trends observed for thin and high pore-density foams proved them to be viable candidates for compact electronics cooling.

Heat Transfer Measurements inside Narrow Channels with Ribs and Trenches

ABSTRACTDetailed heat transfer coefficient distributions are obtained for high aspect ratio (width/height = 12.5) duct with rib and trench enhancement features oriented normal to the coolant flow direction. A transient thermochromic liquid crystal technique has been used to experimentally measure heat transfer coefficients from which Nusselt numbers are calculated on the duct surface featuring heat transfer enhancement features. Reynolds number (calculated based on duct hydraulic diameter) ranging from 7100 to 22400 were experimentally investigated. Detailed measurements of heat transfer provided insight into the role of protruding ribs and trenches on the fluid dynamics in the duct. Experimentally obtained Nusselt numbers are normalized by Dittus-Boelter correlation for developed turbulent flow in circular duct. The triangular trenches provide heat transfer enhancement ratios up to 1.9 for low Reynolds numbers. The in-line rib configuration shows similar levels to the trench whereas staggered rib configuration provides heat transfer enhancement ratios up to 2.2 for a low Reynolds number of 7100.

Heat transfer enhancement in rectangular channels with axial ribs or porous foam under through flow and impinging jet conditions

Heat transfer and pressure loss characteristics of a high aspect ratio duct are measured under both, jet impingement and channel flow conditions, respectively. For both cases, roughness elements in consideration are staggered and inline axial ribs. The spacing ( P) to height ( e) ratios studied are P/ e = 2 and P/ e = 4; the rib height ( e) to channel height ( H) ratio is 0.125. Also studied is an aluminum foam roughness with a porosity of 92% and a height to channel height ratio of 0.15. Reynolds numbers considered for the channel flow case (based on the hydraulic diameter) range from 10,000 to 40,000. Reynolds numbers for the jet impingement case (based on the hole diameter) range from 5,000 to 20,000. Tests are performed using the copper plate regional average method. Results show a 50–90% increase in heat transfer due to the use of axial ribs in both, impingement and channel flow cases. The porous foam shows a more significant increase in heat transfer coefficient for both channel flow and impingement cases.

Effect of Pressure With Wall Heating in Annular Two-Phase Flow

The local distributions of void fraction, interfacial frequency, and velocity have been measured in annular flow of R-134a through a wall-heated, high aspect ratio duct. High aspect ratio ducts provide superior optical access to tubes or irregular geometries. This work expands upon earlier experiments conducted with adiabatic flows in the same test section. Use of thin, transparent heater films on quartz windows provided sufficient electrical power capacity to produce the full range of two-phase conditions of interest. With wall vapor generation, the system pressure was varied from 0.9 to 2.4 MPa, thus allowing the investigation of flows with liquid-to-vapor density ratios covering the range of about 7 to 27, far less than studied in air-water and similar systems. There is evidence that for a given cross-sectional average void fraction, the local phase distributions can be different depending on whether the vapor phase is generated at the wall, or upstream of the test section inlet. In wall-heated flows, local void fraction profiles measured across both the wide and narrow test section dimensions illustrate the profound effect that pressure has on the local flow structure; notably, increasing pressure appears to thin the wall-bounded liquid films and redistribute liquid toward the edges of the test section. This general trend is also manifested in the distributions of mean droplet diameter and interfacial area density, which are inferred from local measurements of void fraction, droplet frequency and velocity. At high pressure, the interfacial area density is increased due to the significant enhancement in droplet concentration.

High Pressure Annular Two-Phase Flow in a Narrow Duct: Part I—Local Measurements in the Droplet Field

Detailed measurements have been made in a high pressure, adiabatic (boiled at the inlet) annular flow in a narrow, high aspect ratio duct using a gamma densitometer, hot-film anemometer and high-speed video photography. Measurements of void fraction, droplet frequency, velocity, drop size, and interfacial area concentration have been made to support the three-field computational capability. An important aspect of this testing is the use of a modeling fluid (R-134a) in a vertical duct which permits visual access in annular flow. This modeling fluid accurately simulates the low liquid-to-vapor density ratio of steam-water flows at high pressures. These measurements have been taken in a narrow duct of hydraulic diameter 4.85 mm, and a cross-section aspect ratio of 22.5. However, the flow displays profiles of various shapes not only in the narrow dimension, but also in the width dimension. In particular, the shape of the void profiles depends on the entrained droplet flux from the edges in the vapor core. The average diameter from these profiles compare well with the models developed in the literature. Interfacial area concentration for these low density ratio flows is higher than the highest concentration reported for air-water flows. Video records show that along with the bow-shaped waves, three-dimensional λ-shaped waves appear in annular flows for high flow rates. [S0098-2202(00)00902-0]

Experimental study of aspect ratio effects on longitudinal vortex flow in mixed convection of air in a horizontal rectangular duct

Combined flow visualization and temperature measurement were carried out to investigate the effects of the aspect ratio on the spatial and temporal characteristics of the longitudinal vortex air flow in a bottom heated horizontal rectangular duct. In the experiment, the Reynolds number was varied from 2.5 to 50, the Rayleigh number from 3000 to 20,000 and the aspect ratio from 2 to 12, covering the steady and unsteady longitudinal vortex flows. The results indicated that the spatial vortex flow structure in a low aspect ratio duct is similar to that in a high aspect ratio duct with the central portion of the wider duct around × = A/2 removed, but the unstable vortex flow at high Re and Ra can be stabilized when the aspect ratio is reduced. Besides, in a high aspect ratio duct ( A ⩾ 8) a reduction in the Reynolds number causes the flow to change from steady to unsteady state with more frequent roll splitting and merging. While in a low aspect ratio duct ( A ⩽ 6) at decreasing Re the roll cross-section exhibits cyclic expansion and contraction in time and the longitudinal rolls become snaking and time periodic in the downstream portion of the duct. At a higher buoyancy-to-inertia ratio the snaking motion of the rolls gets more intensive and is initiated at a shorter distance from the duct inlet. When the value of the aspect ratio is an odd number, it was found that there are still an even number of rolls induced in the duct. The transition from steady to time-dependent state at increasing buoyancy-to-inertia ratio is subcritical in a high aspect ratio duct ( A ⩾ 8). However, in a low aspect ratio duct ( A ⩽ 6) there exists a finite range of the buoyancy-to-inertia ratio for the appearance of the time-periodic snaking vortex flow. Finally, the measured oscillation frequencies of the time periodic snaking vortex flow were correlated.