Sharif Digital Repository

This work is dedicated to finding a suitable measure to judge thermal performance of nanofluids. The importance of this issue arises from misleading claim of excess heat transfer of nanofluids compared to the base fluid, neglecting the hydraulic effects such as increase in pressure drop. To clarify the issue, the experimental setup with capability to create constant Reynolds number and constant pumping power is constructed. Thermal behavior of nanofluids of silicon oxide/water and aluminum oxide/water and distilled water in developing region of laminar flow regime is investigated. In this regard, the convective heat transfer coefficient within the finned tube heat exchanger is evaluated.... 

Nanofluids containing Fe3O4 and carbon nanotubes nanoparticles emulsified and dispersed using gum arabic (GA) and tetramethylammonium hydroxide (TMAH) were made and characterized for potential use as heat transfer fluids. Due to the interaction between the TMAH and GA molecules, the magnetic nanoparticles and CNTs were physically adsorbed. This paper reports an experimental work on the effect of ultrasonication on thermal conductivity of this aqueous suspension. The characterization and surface morphology of the dried samples were studied by using XRD and TEM measurements. Experiments were conducted in the magnetic nanoparticles mass concentration range 0.494-2.428%,... 

The low thermal conductivity of phase change materials has resulted in prolonged melting and freezing processes (charge and discharge) in these materials. This problem has limited the application of these materials in the field of thermal energy storage. In the present study, the effects of adding Fe3O4 magnetic nanoparticles at various concentrations as well as applying the magnetic field on the melting process of paraffin as phase change material have been experimentally studied. Thereupon, a cubic chamber in which the left wall applied a constant heat flux was used. At the optimum concentration of nanoparticles (1 mass%), the constant magnetic field with the intensities of 0.01 T and... 

The perspectives of utilization of a screen mesh heat pipe (HP) for low to medium operating temperature applications are studied in this study. A two-dimensional mathematical model for heat and mass transfer of HPs is presented to define its performances under steady state operations. The model couples heat conduction in the wall with both liquid flow in the wick and vapor flow in the core. Experimental analysis is developed to evaluate the influence of operating parameters (the orientation and the cooling temperature) as well as the evaporator section length on the performance of the HP. Furthermore, a modeling approach to optimize the HP performance from a thermal point of view is... 

In this paper we report experimental results for the performance and rate of heat transfer in copper tubes in solar water heaters with thermosyphonic flow in continuation of experimental data reported in previous publications (Solar Energy, 2003, vol. 74, pp. 441-445, and Energy Sources, 1997, vol. 19, pp. 147-152). We also show a comparison between performances of three kinds of tubes: copper, polypropylene and steel under similar conditions. An analytical relation for calculation of rate of heat transfer in copper tubes is also presented in terms of Nusselt versus Reynolds and Prantdl numbers. A comparison of experimental data showed that performance of copper tubes is slightly better than... 

In this paper, with the aim of enhancing the thermal conductivity of the fluid, a nanofluid is prepared based on SiO2. A series of experimental tests were carried out for both laminar and forced convection regimes in a horizontal tube with two different geometric shapes (circular and square cross section) subjected to constant wall heat flux (4735 W m−2). A comparative study has been done to investigate the effect of the geometry on the convective heat transfer. Moreover, the effect of the volume concentration on the behavior of the nanofluid and the base fluid was evaluated by comparing various volume concentrations (0.05, 0.07 and 0.2%). The experiments were done under two different... 

In this paper, with the aim of enhancing the thermal conductivity of the fluid, a nanofluid is prepared based on SiO2. A series of experimental tests were carried out for both laminar and forced convection regimes in a horizontal tube with two different geometric shapes (circular and square cross section) subjected to constant wall heat flux (4735 W m−2). A comparative study has been done to investigate the effect of the geometry on the convective heat transfer. Moreover, the effect of the volume concentration on the behavior of the nanofluid and the base fluid was evaluated by comparing various volume concentrations (0.05, 0.07 and 0.2%). The experiments were done under two different... 

Multi-stream Plate-fin heat exchangers (MSPFHEs) are among the most efficient heat exchangers in energy-based industries. They should be carefully designed to have maximum effectiveness and to avoid wasting energy. Flow maldistribution could significantly degrade the performance of heat exchangers. This study presents a novel modeling framework to capture the thermally-induced maldistribution in two-phase MSPFHEs. The developed model is used to show how thermally-induced flow maldistribution affects the performance of the heat exchanger, and some possible modifications are investigated to reduce its consequences. Our case study results show that thermally-induced maldistribution decreases... 

It is proposed to employ melting rate, heat input, and detaching droplet diameter as controlled variables to control heat and mass transfer to work piece in a gas metal arc welding process. A two-layer architecture with cascade configuration of PI and MPC controllers is implemented to incorporate existing constraints on the process variables, improve transient behavior of the closed-loop responses and reduce interaction level. Computer simulation results are presented to indicate usefulness of the proposed controlled variables selection and applying two-layer control architecture to control heat and mass transfer to work piece  

The use of solar concentrators can be an alternative for initial cost reduction in the PV systems. However, they suffer from high cell temperature that can be overcome by different active or passive cooling approaches. Spectral splitting and the elimination of high-energy solar photons are effective solutions for cell temperature reduction. In this study, we developed a Polymethyl methacrylate Spectral Splitting Fresnel Lens (SSFL) for linear concentration using a new design, which directs the desired portion of the spectrum towards the cell and diffracts the rest to eliminate the use of beam splitters or nanofluids in the spectral splitting system. Different SSFLs were considered for... 

This paper developed a new mathematical model to investigate the heat transfer as well as wick's thickness of a heat pipe. The model was established by conservative equations of continuity, momentum, and energy in the thermal boundary layer. Using a similarity variable, the governing equations were changed to a set of ordinary differential equations and were solved numerically by the forth-order Runge-Kutta method. The flow variables, such as velocity components, wick's thickness, and Nusselt number, were obtained. The results show that the Nusselt number is proportional to the square root of the Darcy-modified Rayleigh number and to the distance from the edge of the condenser surface.... 

In this paper the analytical and simulation modelling of the combined heat and mass transfer processes that occur in a solid desiccant wheel is carried out. Using the numerical method, the performance of an adiabatic rotary dehumidifier is parametrically studied, and the optimal rotational speed is determined by examining the outlet adsorption-side humidity profiles. An approach to compare the solutions for different conditions used in air dehumidifier has been investigated according to the previous published studies. Comparing the simulated results with the published actual values of an experimental work substantiates the validity of model. The model accuracy with respect to the key... 

In this paper the analytical and simulation modelling of the combined heat and mass transfer processes that occur in a solid desiccant wheel is carried out. Using the numerical method, the performance of an adiabatic rotary dehumidifier is parametrically studied, and the optimal rotational speed is determined by examining the outlet adsorption-side humidity profiles. An approach to compare the solutions for different conditions used in air dehumidifier has been investigated according to the previous published studies. Comparing the simulated results with the published actual values of an experimental work substantiates the validity of model. The model accuracy with respect to the key... 

Most of the methods developed for efficiency estimation of distillation columns were based on the empirical mass transfer and hydraulic relations correlated to laboratory data. Therefore, these methods cannot estimate efficiency of industrial columns with sufficient accuracy. In this paper, a new and applicable method was developed for calculation of efficiency (and mass and heat transfer coefficients) of distillation columns containing structured packings. This method has potential advantages; e.g., it can calculate efficiency without using any empirical mass transfer and hydraulic correlations and models, and without the need to estimate the operational and hydraulic parameters of column.... 

Developing general methods that rely on column data for the efficiency estimation of operating (existing) distillation columns has been overlooked in the literature. Most of the available methods are based on empirical mass transfer and hydraulic relations correlated to laboratory data. Therefore, these methods may not be sufficiently accurate when applied to industrial columns. In this paper, an applicable and accurate method was developed for the efficiency estimation of distillation columns filled with trays. This method can calculate efficiency as well as mass and heat transfer coefficients without using any empirical mass transfer or hydraulic correlations and without the need to... 

An analytical solution is presented to study the heat transfer characteristics of the combined pressure - electroosmotically driven flow in planar microchannels. The physical model includes the Joule heating effect to predict the convective heat transfer coefficient in two dimensional microchannels. The velocity field, which is a function of external electrical field, electroosmotic mobility, fluid viscosity and the pressure gradient, is obtained by solving the hydrodynamically fully-developed laminar Navier-Stokes equations considering the electrokinetic body force for low wall zeta potentials. Then, assuming a thermally fully-developed flow, the temperature distribution and the Nusselt... 

Purpose: Spiral-wound heat exchangers (SWHEs) are widely used in different industries. In special applications, such as cryogenic (HEs), fluid properties may significantly depend on fluid temperature. This paper aims to present an analytical method for design and rating of SWHEs considering variable fluid properties with consistent shell geometry and single-phase fluid. Design/methodology/approach: To consider variations of fluid properties, the HE is divided into identical segments, and the fluid properties are assumed to be constant in each segment. Validation of the analytical method is accomplished by using three-dimensional numerical simulation with shear stress transport k-ω model, and... 

Purpose: Spiral-wound heat exchangers (SWHEs) are widely used in different industries. In special applications, such as cryogenic (HEs), fluid properties may significantly depend on fluid temperature. This paper aims to present an analytical method for design and rating of SWHEs considering variable fluid properties with consistent shell geometry and single-phase fluid. Design/methodology/approach: To consider variations of fluid properties, the HE is divided into identical segments, and the fluid properties are assumed to be constant in each segment. Validation of the analytical method is accomplished by using three-dimensional numerical simulation with shear stress transport k-ω model, and... 

The limitations of the microfabrication technology do not allow producing perfectly smooth microchannels. Hence, exploring the influences of roughness on transport phenomena in microtubes is of great importance to the scientific community. In the present work, consideration is given toward the corrugated roughness effects on fully developed electroosmotic flow and heat transfer in circular microtubes. Analytical solutions based on perturbation technique are presented for the problem assuming a low zeta potential under the constant heat flux boundary condition of the first kind. It is revealed that higher values of the corrugation number and relative roughness give rise to smaller Nusselt... 

In this article, a fully analytical solution of the generalized coupled thermoelasticity problem in a rotating disk subjected to thermal and mechanical shock loads, based on Lord–Shulman model, is presented. The general forms of axisymmetric thermal and mechanical boundary conditions as arbitrary time-dependent heat transfer and traction, respectively, are considered at the inner and outer radii of the disk. The governing equations are solved analytically using the principle of superposition and the Fourier–Bessel transform. The general closed form solutions are presented for temperature and displacement fields. To validate the solutions, the results of this study are compared with the...