Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
652070 | Experimental Thermal and Fluid Science | 2009 | 8 Pages |
Abstract
Uneven phase distribution in heat exchangers is a cause of severe reductions in thermal performances of refrigeration equipment. To date, no general design rules are available to avoid phase separation in manifolds with several outlet channels, and even predicting the phase and mass distribution in parallel channels is a demanding task. In the present paper, measurements of two-phase air-water distributions are reported with reference to a horizontal header supplying 16 vertical upward channels. The effects of the operating conditions, the header geometry and the inlet port nozzle were investigated in the ranges of liquid and gas superficial velocities of 0.2-1.2 and 1.5-16.5Â m/s, respectively. Among the fitting devices used, the insertion of a co-axial, multi-hole distributor inside the header confirmed the possibility of greatly improving the liquid and gas flow distribution by the proper selection of position, diameter and number of the flow openings between the supplying distributor and the system of parallel channels connected to the header.
Related Topics
Physical Sciences and Engineering
Chemical Engineering
Fluid Flow and Transfer Processes
Authors
Annalisa Marchitto, Marco Fossa, Giovanni Guglielmini,