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Numerical identification of critical erosion prone areas in tube heat exchangers

Authors :
Weimin Gao
Junguo Li
Yungang Li
Lingxue Kong
Source :
Engineering Applications of Computational Fluid Mechanics, Vol 14, Iss 1, Pp 1429-1444 (2020)
Publication Year :
2020
Publisher :
Taylor & Francis Group, 2020.

Abstract

The failure of tube heat exchangers is an acute problem in industry and, in most cases, is due to the solid particle erosion of a few tubes. Identifying the critical erosion surfaces and thereafter changing the particle impingement pattern on the surfaces is one of the solutions to increase the lifetime of heat exchangers. In this work the fluid flow, solid particle motion and metal erosion of different two-pass copper-tube heat exchangers were simulated with a refined model and the sophisticated RANS-SST approach. The results showed the importance of the model in capturing the asymmetrical flow, uneven fluid distribution through tube bundle and other flow features for better erosion prediction. The erosion characteristics of three heat exchangers were compared to evaluate their structure with respect to producing low erosion. The simulations provided basic data for identifying the critical areas and damage locations of each heat exchanger. It was found that the particle separation in the inlet header altered the critical erosion locations but did not significantly affect the erosion rate. Theerosion rates at critical areas were also predicted. The results can be applied for predicting the service life and improving the structure of tube heat exchangers.

Details

Language :
English
ISSN :
19942060 and 1997003X
Volume :
14
Issue :
1
Database :
Directory of Open Access Journals
Journal :
Engineering Applications of Computational Fluid Mechanics
Publication Type :
Academic Journal
Accession number :
edsdoj.2db95dd7ec4b408a99c957893ef7809d
Document Type :
article
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.1080/19942060.2020.1835735