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A mathematical model of the plate-fin heat exchanger filled with catalyst (CFPFHX) is established to investigate the continuous cooling process coupled with ortho-para hydrogen conversion at 42–70 K. The flow and heat transfer performance and the efficiency of ortho-para hydrogen conversion in the CFPFHX are quantitatively evaluated, and the effects of the structural parameters on the flow and heat transfer coupled with ortho-para hydrogen conversion are analyzed. The results show that the Elovich model is the best existing kinetic models of ortho-para hydrogen conversion with an average relative deviation of 1.8%. The Colburn heat transfer factor (j factor) of the hot side of the CFPFHX is 4.3 times that of the plate-fin heat exchanger (PFHX), and the thermal enhancement factor (TEF) of the hot side is 37.7% of that of the PFHX. Meanwhile, for the CFPFHX, the j factor and the TEF of the hot side under different structural parameters are always about 8–10 times and 68%–93% of that of the cold side respectively. Therefore, the CFPFHX can ensure the flow and heat transfer performance and realize the ortho-para hydrogen continuous conversion. And a fin with the larger flow area (high fin height, wide fin spacing and small fin thickness) has a better flow and heat transfer performance and ortho-para hydrogen conversion. The outlet para-hydrogen ratio youtp-H2 and the mass space velocity vm in the CFPFHX have an approximate linear trend. When mass space velocity vm ≤ 0.6589 kg/(m3·s), the outlet para-hydrogen ratio youtp-H2 can meet the requirement at 42–70 K. Above all, the mechanism of flow and heat transfer coupled with ortho-para hydrogen conversion is revealed for the first time in this study, which can provide a theoretical guidance for the application of the integrated technology in large scale hydrogen liquefaction process.

As the pressure drop and pump power increase with the enhancement of heat transfer, it is of great value to investigate the comprehensive performance of the heat exchanger based on common accurate correlations of heat transfer and flow friction. This paper adopts a generalized air-side thermal-hydraulic correlation to study the comprehensive performances of the plate fin heat exchanger with wavy fins. To better understand the fin characteristics, performance indexes under the same flow rate, pressure drop and pump power are employed to estimate the comprehensive flow and heat transfer performances. The nonlinear optimization problem is established in consideration of the multiple independent variables with the maximum effectiveness or the minimum modified entropy generation number as the optimization objective function, which is solved by the genetic algorithm. Comparative analysis is conducted for results obtained from the parametric analysis and heat exchanger optimization, indicating that the objective function of the modified entropy generation number is effective for the design optimization of the comprehensive performance.

This study experimentally investigated the evaporation heat transfer and two-phase flow characteristics of a vertical upward flow using R1234ze(E) and R32 as test refrigerants in a plate-fin heat exchanger with offset fins. The adiabatic and evaporation flows of R1234ze(E) were visualized using a high-speed camera. Owing to the asymmetry of the inlet and outlet of the channel, a non-uniform velocity profile in the channel-width direction was observed under both adiabatic and evaporation flows. Evaporation flow accompanied by nucleate bubble generation at the lower area of the channel and the occurrence of a dry area at the upper side of the channel were observed. The heat transfer coefficients of R1234ze(E) and R32 were measured, and the effects of mass flux, quality, and heat flux on heat transfer were clarified. The heat transfer was strongly affected by forced convection at higher mass fluxes and qualities whereas nucleate boiling dominated at higher heat fluxes and lower qualities. The difference in the heat transfer characteristics at local positions in the channel was also investigated by measuring the local wall temperatures. Comparing refrigerants, the heat transfer coefficient of R32 was higher than that of R1234ze(E), regardless of the mass flux and quality, especially at lower mass flux conditions.

This study investigates the issues involved in the design of a compact two-phase thermosyphon in which the locations of evaporator and condenser need a high degree of freedom. Enhancement of boiling heat transfer in the compact evaporator space was achieved by a microfabricated structure. Anticipating situations where gravity does not provide sufficient potential to drive the condensate, a pump-assisted circulation loop was studied. The relative height between the evaporator and condenser and the pumping rate were systematically varied by utilizing two thermosyphon loops. Close examination of the data suggests that there could be an optimum point in the parametric domain where the thermal resistance is minimized with least assistance from the pump.

Heat transfer can be intensified in shell-and-tube heat exchangers for improved heat transfer performance. Such intensification has been widely studied from the point of view of individual heat exchangers (HEs). The use of heat transfer enhancement in Process Integration has many benefits. First, enhanced heat exchangers require less heat transfer area for a given heat duty because of higher heat transfer coefficients. Second, the heat transfer capacity for the given HE can be increased without changing physical size of the exchanger. Third, the use of enhancement can reduce pumping requirement in some cases, as enhanced HE can achieve higher overall heat transfer coefficients with lower velocities, which may lead to lower friction losses. Using enhancement techniques has practical advantages in Heat Exchanger Network (HEN) retrofit, as it can avoid modification of the network structure. The implementation of enhancement is a relatively simple task that can be easily achieved within a normal maintenance period, allowing production losses to be kept to a minimum level and no civil engineering requirement. This chapter provides an introduction to the enhancement methods of commercial shell-and-tube heat exchangers and their engineering application. The key aspects of enhancing shell-and-tube heat exchangers in HEN retrofit are presented and illustrated with examples involving both energy saving and fouling considerations.

Fluid inhomogeneous distribution affects heat transfer efficiency in the plate-fin heat exchanger (PFHE). In order to improve fluid uniform distribution in the exchanger, the irregular-shaped hole leading flow structure (IHLFS) was proposed for solving fluid inhomogeneous distribution among different layers of PFHE. The inlet distributor with irregular-shaped holes was designed according to different inlet flow velocities aiming at improving fluid uniform distribution. The results on fluid flow and heat transfer characteristics were carried out by the methods of CFD and experimental analysis, and finally, the fluid flow characteristics in inlet section of PFHE with IHLFS were achieved. Comparing with round hole leading flow structure (RHLFS), it can be observed that fluid distribution in PFHE with IHLFS is more uniform than that with round hole, however, the dynamic pressure increases accordingly and finally, increases the ratio of heat transfer and dynamic pressure. The comparison results also demonstrate that the IHLFS can improve fluid distribution, decrease fluid impact in inlet section of PFHE and finally, improve heat transfer enhancement.

This paper uses a multi-objective topology optimization method for thermal-fluid problems applied to the design of fins for primary use in plate-fin heat exchangers. The presented method was derive...

Plate-fin heat exchangers provide a broad range of applications in many cryogenic industries for liquefaction and separation of gasses because of their excellent technical advantages such as high effectiveness, compact size, etc. Correlations are available for the design of a plate-fin heat exchanger, but experimental investigations are few at cryogenic temperature. In the present study, a cryogenic heat exchanger test setup has been designed and fabricated to investigate the performance of plate-fin heat exchanger at cryogenic temperature. Major parameters (Colburn factor, Friction factor, etc.) that affect the performance of plate-fin heat exchangers are provided concisely. The effect of mass flow rate and inlet temperature on the effectiveness and pressure drop of the heat exchanger are investigated. It is observed that with an increase in mass flow rate effectiveness and pressure drop increases. The present setup emphasis the systematic procedure to perform the experiment based on cryogenic operating conditions and represent its uncertainties level.

Plate fin heat exchanger is a kind of smaller heat exchange device which has applications in cars, low temperatures, rockets space vehicles etc. The plate fin heat exchanger devices are mostly utilized for liquefaction of nitrogen. So that they are highly efficient because no liquid oxygen will be produced if the efficiency of the system is below the required value, and that is nearly 87%. That’s ‘why it is very necessary to check their efficiency before bringing them in actual application. This efficiency has been calculated here. The required heat exchanger has different shape and its effectiveness is tested experimentally in the heat and mass transfer lab. Experiment is carried out by putting the Quantity of hot and cold fluid same, but the result is obtained by taking different quantity of fluid for different experiment. It means that for one test quantity of both the fluid is taken same and this test is repeated for different quantity. So, in this way productiveness of the required exchanger is determined for different quantity.

The plate-fin heat exchanger has been widely applied in the field of air separation and aerospace due to its high specific surface area of heat transfer. However, the low heat transfer efficiency of its plate bundles has also attracted more attention. It is of great significance to optimize the structure of plate-fin heat exchanger to improve its heat transfer efficiency. The plate bundle was studied by combining numerical simulation with experiment. Firstly, according to the heat and mass transfer theory, the plate bundle calculation model of plate-fin heat exchanger was established, and the accuracy of the UDF (User-Defined Functions) for describing the mass and heat transfer was verified. Then, the influences of fin structure parameters on the heat and mass transfer characteristics of channel were discussed, including the height, spacing, thickness and length of fins. Finally the influence of various factors on the flow field performance under different flow states was integrated to complete the optimal design of the plate bundle.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to present a novel and applied method for optimum designing of plate-finned heat exchanger network. Considering the total annual cost as the objective function, a network of plate-finned heat exchanger is designed and optimized. Design/methodology/approach Accurate evaluation of plate-finned heat exchanger networks depends on different fin types with 10 different geometrical parameters of heat exchangers. In this study, fin numbers are considered as the main decision variables and geometrical parameters of fins are considered as the secondary decision variables. The algorithm applies heat transfer and pressure drop coefficients correction method and differential evolution (DE) algorithm to obtain the optimum results. In this paper, optimization and minimization of the total annual cost of heat exchanger network is considered as the objective function. Findings In this study, a novel and applied method for optimum designing of plate-finned heat exchanger network is presented. The comprehensive algorithm is applied into a case study and the results are obtained for both counter-flow and cross-flow plate-finned heat exchangers. The total annual cost and total area of the network with counter-flow heat exchangers were 12.5% and 23.27%, respectively, smaller than the corresponding values of the network with cross-flow heat exchanger. Originality/value In this paper, a reliable method is used to design, optimize parameters and the economic optimization of heat exchanger network. Taking into account the importance of plate-finned heat exchangers in industrial applications and the complexity in their geometry, the DE methodology is adopted to obtain an optimal geometric configuration. The total annual cost is chosen as the objective function. Applying this technique to a case study illustrates its capability to accurate design plate-finned heat exchangers to improve the objective function of the heat exchanger network from the economic viewpoint with the design of details.

The present paper is a numerical investigation on the performance of perforated baffles in a plate-fin heat exchanger. Two types of perforations are studied, namely the circular and elliptical shapes. Values of heat transfer coefficient, pressure drop, and thermal performance factor are determined for both cases and compared with those for a smooth channel. Also, the flow fields and heat transfer characteristics are determined for different fluids and various Reynolds numbers. The working fluids are complex, non-Newtonian and have an inelastic shear thinning behavior. The obtained results showed a good enhancement in the thermal performance factor by the suggested design in baffles. In the case of low viscous fluids, the elliptical perforated baffle performs better (by about 63.4%) than the circular one for all values of Reynolds number. But for highly viscous fluids, the elliptical perforation shows higher thermal performance than the circular hole by about 25% for low Reynolds numbers and 27% for high Reynolds numbers. The overall thermal performance factors are about 1.55 and 1.74 for the circular and elliptical perforations, respectively.

The cold box, which comprises of several plate-fin heat exchangers (PFHE), is largely utilized in different industries. In this research, the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) technique has been used for investigating the impact of different fluid distributors on the rates of heat and mass transfer, in an industrial complex cold box equipped with plate-fins. While inlet and outlet fluid distributors and channels were taken into account in the computational domain, the porous media technique was applied to the channels as an alternative to the fins in the original cold box. The mass transfer model including the phase change was accounted for by the flash calculations. Local thermal non-equilibrium (LTNE) between the porous medium and fluid flow with a mass transfer was used in the simulations. Three principal side distributors, i.e. diagonals A, B, and C, were used, and their performance was evaluated by CFD. It was found that using each of these types of distributors led to different CFD results in the cold box. The heat transfer rate in the case of the diagonal C was 73% more than that of the diagonal A. The flow uniformity index in the case of the diagonal C was 11.6% greater than that of the diagonal A in the stream C.

The flow and heat transfer characteristics of the TiO2-water nanofluid assuming as a single-phase in the rectangular offset strip fin structure for different Reynolds number (500-1000) and TiO2 nanoparticle volume concentration values (0%-4%) were investigated numerically under three-dimensional, steady state and laminar flow conditions. Simulations were also performed for 1% and 4% nanoparticle volume concentrations of Al2O3-water nanofluid, and the results were compared with those of TiO2-water nanofluid. Results show that when the TiO2-water nanofluid is used, the heat transfer rate, heat transfer coefficient and Nusselt number increase with increasing both Reynolds number and nanoparticle volume concentration, and parallel to these, both pressure loss and pumping power increase. Considering the values of the performance evaluation criteria (PEC) number, it is clear that the use of TiO2-water nanofluid in offset strip fin structure at all Reynolds numbers examined between 1%-4% volume concentration values is quite advantageous. It is observed that TiO2-water nanofluid is much superior to Al2O3-water considering the PEC number. When the Reynolds number is 1000 and the volume concentration value of the TiO2 nanoparticle is 4%, the PEC number value is found to be 1.19, that is, there is a 19% increase compared to water. It is considered that the results of this study can be used as important data on the design of automobile radiators, air-conditioning and defense.

The design of a multi-stream plate-fin heat exchanger is a highly integrated task with multiple opposing objectives and many degrees of freedom. This work shows how it can be fully or partially automated by the combination of a detailed three-dimensional simulation model and an optimization routine. The desired task is formulated as the target of a multi-objective optimization and solved using a genetic algorithm. The workflow is presented using a cryogenic plate-fin heat exchanger with four process streams. The design is optimized towards high efficiency, low pressure drop, and low unit weight by adjusting the outer geometry, the inlet and outlet distributor configuration, and the detailed stream geometry. A detailed analysis of the Pareto-set gives a good overview of possible solutions, and the optimization routine can automatically find a feasible design with a reasonable tradeoff between the objectives. All elements of the framework are implemented in open source software. A highlight of this research is that a very comprehensive and detailed simulation model is employed in the optimization framework. Thus, the presented method can be easily adjusted to fit the needs of other engineering tasks.

This study aims to provide an experimental investigation and comparison of the condensation heat transfer characteristics in a plate–fin heat exchanger (PFHE). The heat flux, mass flux, and saturation pressure were adjusted as experimental parameters to verify the effects on the condensation heat transfer. In addition, condensation heat transfer correlation of two-stream PFHEs was provided based on the experimental data for utilization as a design reference for the heat exchanger. The turbulence is the most influential in heat transfer. One of the ways to foster turbulence is to increase shear stress. The higher flow velocity results in the higher shear stress. That was why increasing mass flux or the flow with higher vapor quality showed the higher heat transfer coefficient (HTC). Refrigerant properties such as viscosity and specific volume of vapor changed according to the saturation pressure. It is expected they affect the degree of turbulence too in similar manners. The mass flux was more influential than the heat flux and saturation pressure. Thus, the equivalent mass flux of the refrigerant is dominant in the derived correlation model. The average difference between experimental and calculated HTC from correlations was about 6.5%. Multi-stream PFHE comprises an additional heat transfer surface, which implies a more active droplet formation. The average pressure drop in the multi-stream is 15% larger than that of the two-stream.

Heat flux and heat transfer coefficient may either be measured by a single measurement process, or they may require the measurement of several quantities before they may be estimated. Of course, it is best if the required quantity is directly measurable. We will give as much detail as possible, keeping in mind the target reader of the book. Many techniques are beyond the scope of the book and require direct reference to the appropriate research literature.

The particle deposition characteristics of plate-fin heat exchangers were studied using a particle deposition model with a random function method. The effects of the inlet velocity, particle size, and temperature difference on particle deposition and the distribution of the particles deposited in plate-fin heat exchangers were investigated. The simulation results showed that the thermal diffusion–induced motion of small particles was obvious at low velocities, the deposition of large particles was mainly limited by the critical velocity, there was a maximum deposition velocity in particle deposition and the maximum deposition velocity decreases with increasing particle size. Finally, large particles would rebound and deposit after secondary impacts. The temperature difference will increase the average deposition efficiency of 1 μm particles, and reduce the average deposition efficiency of 7 μm particles. The plate-fin heat exchanger should be designed with consideration for the particle size range and velocity seen in the intended application.

Fabricating perforations in fins causes improvement in heat dissipation rate with lower pressure drag up to a specific perforation number and size of perforation. Again knurled surfaces augment hea...

Fin and tube heat exchangers are widely used in air conditioning. In this study the effect of tube shape on air-side heat and mass performance was experimentally and numerically investigated under typical operating condition, varying both dry bulb temperature and air flow velocity. The experimental results showed that the dry-bulb temperature has little impact on sensible heat transfer rate, whereas the mass transfer rate increased with the increase of dry-bulb temperature. Compared with circular tube, the heat transfer coefficient of elliptic tube is about 66% higher and the dehumidifying coefficient is around 21% higher. However, the difference of the dehumidifying coefficient between two tube shapes shrinks towards equality when the dry bulb temperature reaches to 28 °C. To further discuss the heat transfer mechanism of circular and elliptic tube heat exchangers, three-dimensional numerical simulations were conducted based on the experiments. The results showed that the heat and mass transfer performance was closely related to the tube shape. When wet air flowed around elliptic tube, the streamline shape served to make the flow and temperature field uniform. The flow boundary layer as well as temperature boundary layer was thinned, especially on the upstream and downstream of tubes, so the influence of wake was reduced and the water vapor was efficiently removed. This results in improvement of the heat and mass transfer performance in the wake region of each tube. For the same heat duty, the plate fin heat exchanger with elliptic tube is more compact than that with circular tube.

The mal-distribution of gas–liquid mixtures has serious influences on the heat-transfer performance of plate–fin heat exchangers (PFHEs), which would result in an adverse effect on the stable and efficient operation of a natural gas liquefaction plant. Therefore, it is necessary to investigate the phase distribution performance of PFHEs and its influence on the natural gas liquefaction performance. In this study, a two-phase flow distribution experimental system was built to investigate the flow distribution characteristics of a PFHE under different working conditions. The effects of gas–liquid ratio, tilt angle, and sloshing on the gas–liquid distribution were studied. In addition, the influences of mal-distribution of the feed gas, nitrogen refrigerant, and mixed refrigerant (MR) on the heat transfer and natural gas liquefaction performance were analyzed through the Aspen Muse software. The results showed that the greater the gas–liquid ratio and tilt angle, the more uneven the liquid flow distribution. The efficiency of the MR process in the tilt condition was reduced by 5.2% to 18.5% compared to that in the horizontal condition. Compared with the tilt working condition, the sloshing could reduce the unevenness of the flow distribution. To satisfy the natural gas liquefaction rate of more than 90%, the critical standard deviation values of flow distribution unevenness of the feed gas, nitrogen refrigerant, MR, and MR under the tilt condition were 8.33, 2.95, 4.42 (liquid phase), and 1.42 (liquid phase), respectively. In the process design, to ensure the output and liquefaction rate, the amount of the refrigerant circulation and power consumption should be kept at the margin of approximately 6% and 4% for the nitrogen expander and MR liquefaction processes, respectively.

The compact heat exchanger is significant for hybrid and electric/fuel cell vehicles with high energy utilization efficiency. This contribution introduces the heat current method to propose a new solution for the design and optimization of heat exchanger structure by combining the empirical correlations of heat transfer and flow resistance. On the premise of decreasing the air flow length of a plate-fin heat exchanger, the tree traversal method is utilized to optimize the offset strip fins on both the hot and the cold fluid sides of a plate-fin cross-flow heat exchanger. Moreover, an experimental setup is built for testing the thermal-hydraulic performances of the original and improved heat exchangers. The results show that the difference between the experimental and the theoretical results is less than 3.23% which represents the heat current method is feasible for heat exchanger analysis and optimization. Meanwhile, the total heat transfer coefficient increases by 7.43% and the pressure loss on the air side reduces by 29.7% for the improved heat exchanger, which is more suitable and high-efficient for the limited space in a high-power vehicle. Finally, the corresponding functions of the total heat transfer coefficient and pressure loss with different air mass flow rates are constructed for future practical applications of the improved heat exchanger.

A novel caudal-fin-inspired hourglass-shaped self-agitator installed inside a plate-fin heat exchanger has been experimentally investigated to characterize its thermo-hydraulic performance. Because of fluid-structure interaction between the air and the caudal-fin-inspired hourglass-shaped self-agitator, there is periodic conversion between fluid kinetic energy and elastic strain energy. Vortices generated by the self-sustained vibration of the self-agitator enhance flow mixing and thus heat transfer performance. Experiments were conducted at a wide range of Reynolds numbers from 400 to 10,000, which covered the laminar-transitional-turbulent regime. Experimental correlations of pressure drop as a function of a dimension parameter, friction factor, and Nusselt number have been proposed. Mutual coupling motions and effects of multiple-row flapping caudal-fin-inspired hourglass-shaped self-agitators in parallel and tandem configurations were studied by using a high-speed camera. A stereo Particle Image Velocimetry system was used to conduct detailed flow field measurements to quantify the flow mixing level. Parameter studies for the stream-wise distance (i.e., the pitch) between the neighboring caudal-fin-inspired hourglass-shaped self-agitators have been investigated to exploit the best performance of the heat exchanger equipped with caudal-fin-inspired hourglass-shaped self-agitators. For the chosen plate-fin heat exchanger and assigned working conditions, the best heat transfer performance was obtained with twelve-row self-agitators with a pitch of 12.5 mm, which caused a 200% increase in the Nusselt number over the clean channel at the same Reynolds number. However, the best overall performance was obtained with six-row self-agitators with a pitch of 25 mm, which caused a 68% enhancement in thermal-hydraulic characteristics compared to the clean channel at the same Reynolds number.