Heat Flux Levels Research Articles

A numerical study on the effects of H2 addition in non-premixed turbulent combustion of C3H8–H2–N2 mixture using a steady flamelet approach

This study has been implemented in two sections. At first, the turbulent jet flame of DLR-B is simulated by combining the k–ε turbulence model and a steady flamelet approach. The DLR-B flame under consideration has been experimentally investigated by Meier et al. who obtained velocity and scalar statistics. The fuel jet composition is 33.2% H2, 22.1% CH4 and 44.7% N2 by volume. The jet exit velocity is 63.2 m/s resulting in a Reynolds number of 22,800. Our focus in the first part is to validate the developed numerical code. Comparison with experiments showed good agreement for temperature and species distribution. At the second part, we exchanged methane with propane in the fuel composition whilst maintaining all other operating conditions unchanged. We investigated the effect of hydrogen concentration on C3H8–H2–N2 mixtures so that propane mole fraction extent is fixed. The hydrogen volume concentration rose from 33.2% up to 73.2%. The achieved consequences revealed that hydrogen addition produces elongated flame with increased levels of radiative heat flux and CO pollutant emission. The latter behavior might be due to quenching of CO oxidation process in the light of excessive cold air downstream of reaction zone.

Surface Energy Exchanges during Pre-monsoon Thunderstorm Activity over a Tropical Station Kharagpur

In the present study an attempt has been made to understand the variation of surface energy fluxes such as net radiation, sensible, latent and soil heat during different epochs of thunderstorm activity at Kharagpur. The study also focuses in delineating the difference in the surface energy budget from the days of thunderstorm activity to fair weather days in the pre-monsoon months (April and May) which is locally known as thunderstorm season. For this purpose, experimental data obtained from the Severe Thunderstorms- Observations and Regional Modeling (STORM) programme during pre-monsoon months of 2007, 2009 and 2010 at Kharagpur (22°30′N, 87°20′E), West Bengal, India are used. The present study reveals quick response, in the order of a few days, in the variations of transport of energy fluxes at soil-atmosphere interface to the upper atmosphere vis-a-vis to the occurrence of thunderstorm activity. Rise of surface sensible heat flux to the level of surface latent heat flux a day or two before the occurrence of a thunderstorm has been identified as a precursor signal for the thunderstorm occurrence over Kharagpur. Distinguishable differences are found in the partitioning of the surface energy fluxes to that of net radiation between thunderstorm and non-thunderstorm days. The present study reveals more Bowen’s ratio during thunderstorm days to that of nonthunderstorm days. These results are useful in validating mesoscale model simulations of thunderstorm activity.

PREDICTING CONTINUUM BREAKDOWN OF RAREFIED MICRO/NANO FLOWS USING ENTROPY AND ENTROPY GENERATION ANALYSIS

In the current study, the DSMC method is utilized to obtain the entropy, entropy generation and the local gradient length Knudsen number in the rarefied flows. Two particular geometries, cavity and flat plate, are considered to study the departure from equilibrium state in the presence of sudden expansion/contraction, bend in the velocity profile, boundary flow and shock waves. The entire slip regime is considered to investigate small and large nonequilibrium effects on the entropy and entropy productions. Our investigation reveals that the distribution of entropy in the rarefied flow is very similar to the temperature contour. The entropy generation distribution in the micro cavity indicates that the two top corners are the regions around which departure from equilibrium state takes place. The study of entropy generation over the flat plate reveals that the entropy production is maximized along the shock wave. Moreover, increasing the rarefaction effects thickens the nonequilibrium shock wave. We also observed that increasing the nonequilibrium effects reduces the level of entropy generation in the rarefied flow. As the flow density decreases in the nonequilibrium regime, the level of shear stress and heat flux reduces, which subsequently lower the level of entropy generation in the rarefied flows. Furthermore, it was found that although the level of entropy generation in the flow reduces as the Knudsen number increases, the boundaries of the maximum entropy production region extends under large rarefaction effects.

A simplified model for predicting the ignition of FRP composites with validation using intermediate‐scale fire experiment data

ABSTRACTThis study presents a simplified theoretical model to predict the ignition of FRP composites of general thermal thickness (GTT) subjected to one‐sided heating. A simplified GTT heat transfer model to predict the surface temperature of GTT composite panels was developed, and the exposed surface temperature was used as ignition criterion. To validate the GTT model, intermediate scale calorimeter fire tests of E‐glass fiber reinforced polyester composite panels at three heat flux levels were performed to obtain intermediate‐scale fire testing data in a controlled condition with well‐defined thermal boundary conditions. The GTT model was also verified by using results from finite element modeling predictions. This model can be used to estimate the surface temperature increase, time‐to‐ignition, and mass loss of FRP composites for fire safety design and analysis. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Chaotic flow in a 2D natural convection loop with heat flux boundaries

This computational study investigates the nonlinear dynamics of unstable convection in a 2D thermal convection loop (i.e., thermosyphon) with heat flux boundary conditions. The lower half of the thermosyphon is subjected to a positive heat flux into the system while the upper half is cooled by an equal-but-opposite heat flux out of the system. Water is employed as the working fluid with fully temperature dependent thermophysical properties and the system of governing equations is solved using a finite volume method. Numerical simulations are performed for varying levels of heat flux and varying strengths of gravity to yield Rayleigh numbers ranging from 1.5×102 to 2.8×107. Simulation results demonstrate that multiple regimes are possible and include: (1) conduction, (2) damped, stable convection that asymptotes to steady-state, (3) unstable, Lorenz-like chaotic convection with flow reversals, and (4) high Rayleigh, aperiodic stable convection without flow reversals. Delineation of the various flow regimes, as characterized by the temporal evolution of bulk mass flow rate, is obtained in terms of heat flux, gravity, and the Rayleigh number. Temporal frequencies of the oscillatory behavior and residence time in a circulatory direction are explored and described for the various thermal and gravitational forcing (Rayleigh number) applied to the system.

Numerical simulation of a blanket cooling system for fusion reactor based on PWR conditions

The simulations of a blanket cooling system were presented to address the choice of cooling channel geometry and coolant input data which are related to blanket engineering implementation. This work was performed using computer aided design (CAD) and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) technology. Simulations were carried out for the blanket module with a size of 0.6m×0.45m in toroidal plane, and the nuclear heat was applied on the cooling system at Pn (neutron wall load) of 5MW/m2. The structure factors and input data of hydraulics were investigated to explore the optimal parameters to match the PWR condition. It was found that the inlet velocity of first wall (FW) channel should be within the range of 2.48–3.34m/s. As a result, the temperature rise (TR) of the coolant in the FW channel would be 24–25K. This leads to the remaining space for TR within the range of 15K in the piping circuits. It also indicated that the FW plays an important role in TR (reaches 60% of the whole cooling system) due to its high level of Pn and heat flux in the zones. It was predicted that the nuclear heat inside blanket module could be removed completely by the piping circuits with an acceptable pipe bore and the related input data. Finally, a possible design range of cooling parameters was proposed in view of engineering feasibility and blanket neutronics design.

Finite difference analysis of thermal response and post-fire flexural degradation of glass fiber reinforced composites coated with carbon nanofiber based nanopapers

In this study, a 1D transient finite difference model was developed to predict the thermal response and post-fire flexural modulus degradation of glass fiber reinforced polyester composites subjected to various levels of heat flux. A carbon nanofiber (CNF) based hybrid nanopaper was coated onto the surface of the composites. The protective nanopaper coating was treated as to impose a temperature boundary condition in the model. A temperature dependent post-fire mechanical property model proposed in an earlier study was implemented with the thermal model in which the porosity and permeability of the material were taken into account. By comparing the post-fire residual flexural moduli, the model prediction showed reasonable agreement with the experimental data and expected physical behaviors. The model numerically demonstrates how the coating of nanopaper helps retain the structural integrity of the composite material, namely, the nanopaper coating leads to a reduction in mass loss, reduced cold side temperature, and eventually improved mechanical property. Furthermore, the parametric study of the model suggested that the porosity of the material has profound influence on the residual moduli of the composites.

Integrated computational study of ultra-high heat flux cooling using cryogenic micro-solid nitrogen spray

A new type of ultra-high heat flux cooling system using the atomized spray of cryogenic micro-solid nitrogen (SN2) particles produced by a superadiabatic two-fluid nozzle was developed and numerically investigated for application to next generation super computer processor thermal management. The fundamental characteristics of heat transfer and cooling performance of micro-solid nitrogen particulate spray impinging on a heated substrate were numerically investigated and experimentally measured by a new type of integrated computational–experimental technique. The employed Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) analysis based on the Euler–Lagrange model is focused on the cryogenic spray behavior of atomized particulate micro-solid nitrogen and also on its ultra-high heat flux cooling characteristics. Based on the numerically predicted performance, a new type of cryogenic spray cooling technique for application to a ultra-high heat power density device was developed. In the present integrated computation, it is clarified that the cryogenic micro-solid spray cooling characteristics are affected by several factors of the heat transfer process of micro-solid spray which impinges on heated surface as well as by atomization behavior of micro-solid particles. When micro-SN2 spraying cooling was used, an ultra-high cooling heat flux level was achieved during operation, a better cooling performance than that with liquid nitrogen (LN2) spray cooling. As micro-SN2 cooling has the advantage of direct latent heat transport which avoids the film boiling state, the ultra-short time scale heat transfer in a thin boundary layer is more possible than in LN2 spray. The present numerical prediction of the micro-SN2 spray cooling heat flux profile can reasonably reproduce the measurement results of cooling wall heat flux profiles. The application of micro-solid spray as a refrigerant for next generation computer processors is anticipated, and its ultra-high heat flux technology is expected to result in an extensive improvement in the effective cooling performance of large scale supercomputer systems.

Global modelling of fire protection performance of an intumescent coating under different furnace fire conditions

This article presents a method to model the overall fire protection performance of an intumescent coating under different post-flashover furnace fire conditions. Intumescent coatings are reactive fire protection materials, and their fire protection performance, among which the maximum expansion ratio is the key indicator, depends on the heating condition. The aim of this research is to find one common set of properties to enable the intumescent coating fire protection performance to be predicted across different heating conditions on the intumescent coating. The obtained properties are implemented in a model to predict the global expansion process of intumescent coating and the protected steel substrate temperature under various furnace temperature–time curves. This model has previously been demonstrated by the authors to provide accurate results for cone calorimeter tests under different levels of radiant heat flux (50 and 65 kW m−2) and with different combinations of steel plate thickness (5, 10 and 20 mm) and intumescent coating dry film thickness (0.4, 0.8 and 1.2 mm). This article will present the experimental results of post-flashover furnace fire tests under different fire temperature–time relationships (slow, fast and standard) for the same combinations of steel plate thickness and dry film thickness as used in the cone calorimeter tests. A comparison between the prediction and experimental results indicates that the steel plate temperature results are typically within 10% and the final expanded thickness within 20% of each other.

Thermal evaluation of uranium silicide miniplates irradiated at high heat flux

The Gas Test Loop (GTL)-1 irradiation experiment was conducted in the Advanced Test Reactor (ATR) to assess corrosion performance of proposed booster fuel at heat flux levels ∼30% above the design operating condition. Sixteen miniplates fabricated from 25% enriched, high-density (4.8gU/cm3) U3Si2/Al dispersion fuel with 6061 aluminum cladding were subjected to peak beginning of cycle (BOC) heat fluxes ranging from 411 to 593W/cm2. No adverse impacts to the miniplates were observed at these high heat flux levels. A detailed finite element model was constructed to calculate temperatures and heat flux for an as-run cycle average effective ATR south lobe power of 25.4MW(t). Miniplate heat flux levels and fuel, cladding, hydroxide, and coolant–hydroxide interface temperatures were calculated using the average hydroxide thickness on each miniplate measured during post-irradiation examination. The purpose of this study was to obtain a best estimate of the as-run experiment temperatures to aid in establishing acceptable heat flux levels and designing fuel qualification experiments for this fuel type.

Experimental Study on Thermal Diffusivity of Intumescent Fire-Retardant Materials

Thermal properties of intumescent fire-retardant materials are important parameters as input data in modeling combustion behavior of these materials in fire. However, Data regarding thermal properties especially thermal diffusivity of these composites are sparse. In this paper, intumescent fire-retardant polypropylene (IFR-PP) and char formed after the combustion of IFR-PP materials by the cone calorimeter at heat flux level of 50 kW/m2 are studied to obtain the thermal diffusivity data of them. Study results show the value of thermal diffusivity for IFR-PP tends to decrease when the temperature increase especially in higher temperatures. Thermal diffusivity of char formed after the combustion of IFR-PP material decreases gradually with the rise of temperature. Thermal diffusivity value measured at room temperature could not be used as input parameters in a combustion model when it is established to simulate the burning behavior of IFR-PP composites in fire.

Pyrolysis of corrugated cardboard in inert and oxidative environments

The thermal decomposition of corrugated cardboard has been studied in inert and oxidative (non-flaming) atmospheres under a range of radiant heat fluxes relevant to fire conditions in warehouse storage applications. Experiments were performed in a Fire Propagation Apparatus (FPA) on double-wall corrugated cardboard at heat flux levels of 20, 60, and 100kW/m2. Pyrolysis data comprised of gasification rates and surface temperatures were collected for tests carried out in ambient atmospheres consisting of 100% N2 as well as 2%, 6%, 8%, 10%, and 14% (mol) O2 in balance nitrogen. It is shown that the presence of oxygen has an appreciable effect at all heat flux levels; however, it is most prevalent at low heat fluxes. Analyses are presented in an effort to gain further understanding of char oxidation processes. Results show that the maximum heat evolved in oxidative environments is relatively constant and similar for all conditions tested. Furthermore this heat release rate is found to be comparatively small relative to the high radiant fluxes tested; this explains the experimentally observed behavior. This study provides a comprehensive dataset that may be used in conjunction with approaches recently adopted in the fire community in which optimization procedures are employed to generate material properties for pyrolysis models used in CFD fire simulations.

Gyrokinetic prediction of microtearing turbulence in standard tokamaks

First global gyrokinetic simulations of microtearing instabilities in ASDEX Upgrade geometry provide increasing evidence for the existence of these modes in standard tokamaks. It is found that even in only moderately large devices, nonlocal effects like profile shearing are negligible, supporting the use of an efficient flux-tube approach. Nonlinear gyrokinetic simulations show that the resulting level of magnetic electron heat flux can be experimentally relevant.

The Effect of the Location of Nucleation Sites on the Thermal-Hydraulic Stability of a Short-Tube Natural Circulation Loop

The use of small two-phase natural circulation loops is an attractive option for efficient cooling applications and innovative steam generators. An experimental study was conducted to examine how the thermal-hydraulic stability and operating conditions of these devices are affected by nucleation sites. A very smooth glass tube with artificial nucleation sites was used as a boiling channel. The mass flow rate was obtained as a function of heat flux and nucleation site location. Nucleation sites have a strong impact on stability behavior, particularly for low heat flux levels. The observed flow instabilities were analyzed with regard to nonlinear effects and chaotic behavior.

Cone calorimeter evaluation of two flame retardant cotton fabrics

SUMMARYUnbleached (gray) cotton needle‐punched nonwoven (NW) fabrics with 12.5% polypropylene scrim were treated with two phosphate–nitrogen‐based flame retardant (FR) formulations, Southern Regional Research Center (SRRC)‐1 and SRRC‐2. The SRRC‐1 formulation contains diammonium phosphate as the FR chemical along with urea and dimethyloldihydroxyethyleneurea. Because a trace amount of formaldehyde was still expected to be released from SRRC‐1‐treated FR cotton under high heat, it was preferable to eliminate the dimethyloldihydroxyethyleneurea, leading to the revised formulation SRRC‐2. It has a higher content of diammonium phosphate and did not use the polyethylene emulsion that was in SRRC‐1. Both formulations were of low cost as they were developed at SRRC using industrial grade chemicals. The fabrics were evaluated with a cone calorimeter using three heat flux levels, 20, 30, and 50 kW/m2. On the basis of the overall cone calorimeter results for heat released and ignition times, FR NW fabrics that were treated with SRRC‐2 were found to be slightly superior in flammability properties to those treated with the earlier SRRC‐1 formulation, but the differences were statistically insignificant. Both preparations were much less flammable than the untreated control cotton NW fabrics. Compared with the untreated NW fabrics, the FR fabrics had higher visible smoke production. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Manufacturing of Inconel 718 Based Honeycomb Panels for Metallic Thermal Protection Systems

Metallic thermal protection system (MTPS) offers significant improvements over the ceramic based TPS for reentry applications. Space shuttle refurbishment time is estimated to be around 17000 man hours between flights. Metallic based TPS can be fabricated easily and provides wide range of design options for TPS. Adaptability and robustness of metallic thermal protection systems offers the potential for reusability. In this work, a unique manufacturing process has been evolved to realize light weight honeycomb panels through corrugation, laser welding and diffusion brazing of faceplates, where in 50 micron thick Inconel718 foil is used for making honeycomb core and 0.2mm thick Inconel718 foil as faceplates. The compression and three point bend test on these panels have shown no debond between faceplates and honeycomb core. 150x150x5mm size honeycomb panels were coated with YSZ and NiCrAlY based Thermal Barrier Coatings (TBC) and high temperature tests have shown thermal resistance of around 570 °C with front wall temperature of 1186 °C and back wall of 533 °C. Also these panels have been characterized for reusability by the testing of same panel at different heat flux levels. Though it is found that honeycomb panel has shown its integrity without debond a certain acceptable level of degradation in coating is observed. Thus Inconel718 based honeycomb panels with TBC coating are proved for use as thermal protection system for reusable launch vehicle systems.

Experimental study of free convection in a window with a heated between-panes blind

An experimental study has been conducted to examine free convection in a window with an enclosed aluminum venetian-type blind. The unique feature of this experiment was that the blind slats were heated electrically to simulate absorbed solar radiation. Convective heat transfer measurements and temperature field visualization were obtained using a Mach–Zehnder laser interferometer. Optical measurements were made for two glazing spacings, two blind slat angles, two blind heat flux levels, and two glazing temperature differences. Both local and average convective heat flux data were obtained in the center region of the tall air-filled enclosure. At the widest glazing spacing, the temperature field was found to be unsteady. For these cases, the temporal fluctuation of the local convective heat transfer was time-averaged using a high speed camera. The experimental results have been compared to a simplified method in the literature for predicting the center-glass heat flux for this configuration.

Flammability behavior of fiber–fiber hybrid fabrics and composites

AbstractThe effect of heat flux levels on burning behavior and heat transmission properties of hybrid fabrics and composites has been investigated using cone calorimeter and heat transmission techniques. The hybrid fabric structures woven out of E‐glass (warp) and polyether ether ketone (PEEK) (weft) and E‐glass (warp) and polyester (weft) have been studied at high heat flux levels keeping in view the flame retardant requirements of structural composites. The performance of the glass–PEEK fabric even at high heat flux levels of 75 kW/m2 was comparable with the performance of glass–polyester fabric evaluated at 50 kW/m2. The results further demonstrate that glass–PEEK hybrid fabrics exhibit low peak heat release rate, low heat release rate, low heat of combustion, suggesting an excellent combination of materials and fall under the low‐risk category and are comparable with the performance of carbon fiber‐epoxy‐based systems. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2011

Subcooled Boiling in the Ultrasonic Field—On the Cause of Microbubble Emission Boiling

Subcooled quasi-pool boiling for water and for ethanol aqueous solutions of 10% by weight (10wt%) and 50wt% and ethanol in an ultrasonic field was experimentally performed for the upward flat heating surface of a copper block with 10 mm diameter under atmospheric conditions. Tested liquid subcooling was 15 K, 20 K, and 25 K for water and aqueous solutions of ethanol and 20 K, 30 K, and 40 K for 100wt% ethanol. At 20 K of liquid subcooling for water and ethanol aqueous solutions, no microbubble emission boiling (MEB) has been observed in quasi-pool boiling. Even if MEB occurs, the heat flux levels off and it turns easily to film boiling. In an ultrasonic field, MEB occurs remarkably. Then the heat flux increases to higher than the ordinary critical heat flux as observed in highly subcooled boiling. The experimental results show that the ultrasonic vibration introduces instability of the interface of liquid and vapor and accelerates MEB at 20 K of liquid subcooling for water and aqueous solutions of ethanol. At 15 K of liquid subcooling for water and aqueous solutions, no effect of ultrasonic vibration is observed. However, at 25K of liquid subcooling, the ultrasonic vibration extends MEB region to higher superheating of the heating surface for aqueous solutions of ethanol. The maximum heat flux in MEB decreases with increasing of ethanol concentration and becomes critical heat flux for 100wt% ethanol. No effect of ultrasonic vibration on boiling is observed for the 100wt% ethanol in these experiments.

Radiative-convective heat transfer of a spherically shaped space vehicle in carbon dioxide

A system of equations of motion of viscous, heat-conducting, chemically nonequilibrium, and selectively radiating and absorbing gas is used for solving the problem of radiative-convective heat transfer of a space vehicle of the simplest (spherical) shape in carbon dioxide used for simulating the Mars atmosphere. Comparison is made of the convective and radiative heating of the entire surface of the space vehicle (from forward to rear stagnation point) for the typical conditions of entry of space vehicles into the Mars atmosphere, in particular, for individual points of the Pathfinder trajectory. It is demonstrated that, in some regions of space vehicle entry into the atmosphere, the radiative thermal heating of some elements of space vehicle surface may exceed the convective thermal heating. There is also demonstrated the need for analysis of the level of radiation heat fluxes on the entire surface of the Mars-bound space vehicle rather than on its frontal surface alone.