Documenti di Didattica
Documenti di Professioni
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48, April
2006). For personal use only. Additional distribution in either paper or digital form is not permitted without ASHRAE’s permission.
By Detlef Westphalen, Ph.D., Member ASHRAE; Kurt Roth, Ph.D., Associate Member ASHRAE; and
James Brodrick, Ph.D., Member ASHRAE
This is the thirty-first article inspired by a DOE report cover- tion to turbulent flow, creating vorticity that increases mix-
ing energy-saving HVAC&R technologies. ing, or restarting the thermal boundary layer to decrease its
thickness. Table 1 describes several different types of heat
H
eat exchanger effectiveness can impact the efficiency transfer enhancement.
of vapor-compression cycles used in air conditioners, In some cases, the heat exchanger operating conditions permit
heat pumps, refrigeration equipment, and refrigera- the flow to be tripped from laminar to turbulent flow if subjected
tors. As the refrigerant condensing or evaporating temperature to a sufficiently strong perturbation. The surface downstream
approaches that of the ultimate heat transfer medium, e.g., of flow transition then experiences higher heat transfer coef-
the outdoor air temperature for an air-cooled condenser, ficients because most resistance to heat transfer occurs across
the vapor compression cycle temperature difference (also a thin viscous flow layer near the wall instead of across the
referred to as the lift) decreases. This, in turn, decreases the entire boundary layer. Tripping devices used include surface
pressure ratio across the compressor, increasing its opera- obstructions (steps, coils, tapes, three-dimensional shapes),
tional coefficient of performance (COP) and decreasing its surface indentations (cavities, dimples), roughness, as well as
energy consumption. upstream turbulence and vorticity.1
In vapor compression cycles, enhancement techniques aug- Upstream vorticity does not always cause a flow to become
ment both refrigerant- and air-side heat transfer. Due to the turbulent, but its swirling motions can enhance heat transfer by
more favorable heat transfer characteristics of refrigerants and increasing mixing between the air at the heat exchanger sur-
liquids relative to air, and the common use of helical grooves face and the bulk airflow. Examples include wavy fins, surface
(rifling) to enhance refrigerant-side heat transfer, air-side winglets, and other elements that protrude from fin surfaces
heat transfer tends to limit overall heat exchanger efficiency, sufficiently to generate vorticity.1,2,3
accounting for two-thirds or more of total heat transfer resis- At the leading edge of a heat exchanger surface, the thermal
tance. Consequently, this column focuses primarily on air-side boundary layer is thin and poses little resistance to heat transfer.
heat transfer enhancement techniques. As the length from the leading edge increases, so does the resis-
In the absence of enhancement, most HVAC air-to-liquid tance to heat transfer. Some designs interrupt the heat transfer
heat exchangers have laminar flow over surfaces due to surfaces to enable the boundary layer to restart, increasing h.
the small hydraulic diameters of spaces between fins. Heat Practical examples of devices used to restart boundary layers
transfer in laminar flows occurs across a thermal boundary include offset strips and louvered fins.1,2,3
layer between the heat exchanger surface and the airflow. All of the approaches discussed previously are passive, i.e.,
Unlike turbulent boundary layers, which have vigorous they do not require additional energy to modify the flow. On
mixing due to turbulent flow structures that readily transfer the other hand, most increase the pressure drop of the heat
heat between the surface and the airflow, calmer laminar exchanger and, in turn, increase the fan energy consumption.
boundary layers have lower heat transfer coefficients, h. Consequently, their net effectiveness depends upon the balance
To overcome these limitations, heat transfer enhancement between the reduction in compressor power from increased heat
approaches augment heat transfer by either causing a transi- transfer and the increase in fan power.
Slits or offset fins interrupt the boundary layer, restarting it, creat-
Surface Interruptions 50% – 100%
ing secondary flows, and/or generating flow unsteadiness*
Passive
Electrohydrodynamic (EHD) High-voltage (>1 kV) applied to an electrode near a plate in-
300%+
duces secondary flows in boundary layer (liquid flows only)
Boundary Layer Injection Enhancement primarily for multiphase flows 50% – 500%
Boundary Layer Suction Removal of boundary layer restarts boundary layer downstream Large†