Compact Aluminium Foam Heat Exchangers
The aim of this study was to investigate the potential application of metal foams in shell-tube recuperators. A356 aluminium foam was cast around the internal and external surfaces of a thin-walled copper tube to enhance heat transfer between separated water streams at different temperatures. The re...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2023-08-01
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| Series: | Metals |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2075-4701/13/8/1440 |
| _version_ | 1797583842220965888 |
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| author | Thomas Fiedler Nima Movahedi |
| author_facet | Thomas Fiedler Nima Movahedi |
| author_sort | Thomas Fiedler |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The aim of this study was to investigate the potential application of metal foams in shell-tube recuperators. A356 aluminium foam was cast around the internal and external surfaces of a thin-walled copper tube to enhance heat transfer between separated water streams at different temperatures. The results demonstrated that the aluminium foam drastically increased heat transfer efficiency due to its large volumetric surface area and high thermal conductivity. In the shell-tube foam recuperators, a maximum heat transfer efficiency of 48.1% was observed, compared to only 12.2% for a single copper tube without metal foam. The pressure drop across the external foam increased with the flow rate, from an average value of 1.19 kPa at 1.0 L/min to 7.36 kPa at 3.0 L/min. These findings suggest that metal foams have great potential for use in shell-tube recuperators, which could significantly improve the efficiency of heat transfer in various industrial and engineering applications. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T23:44:43Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-883621ac076c4e5481dc7be65ff7882d |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2075-4701 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T23:44:43Z |
| publishDate | 2023-08-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Metals |
| spelling | doaj.art-883621ac076c4e5481dc7be65ff7882d2023-11-19T02:11:13ZengMDPI AGMetals2075-47012023-08-01138144010.3390/met13081440Compact Aluminium Foam Heat ExchangersThomas Fiedler0Nima Movahedi1College of Engineering, Science and Environment, The University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW 2308, AustraliaCollege of Engineering, Science and Environment, The University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW 2308, AustraliaThe aim of this study was to investigate the potential application of metal foams in shell-tube recuperators. A356 aluminium foam was cast around the internal and external surfaces of a thin-walled copper tube to enhance heat transfer between separated water streams at different temperatures. The results demonstrated that the aluminium foam drastically increased heat transfer efficiency due to its large volumetric surface area and high thermal conductivity. In the shell-tube foam recuperators, a maximum heat transfer efficiency of 48.1% was observed, compared to only 12.2% for a single copper tube without metal foam. The pressure drop across the external foam increased with the flow rate, from an average value of 1.19 kPa at 1.0 L/min to 7.36 kPa at 3.0 L/min. These findings suggest that metal foams have great potential for use in shell-tube recuperators, which could significantly improve the efficiency of heat transfer in various industrial and engineering applications.https://www.mdpi.com/2075-4701/13/8/1440open-cell metal foamshell and tube heat exchangerheat transferpressure drop |
| spellingShingle | Thomas Fiedler Nima Movahedi Compact Aluminium Foam Heat Exchangers Metals open-cell metal foam shell and tube heat exchanger heat transfer pressure drop |
| title | Compact Aluminium Foam Heat Exchangers |
| title_full | Compact Aluminium Foam Heat Exchangers |
| title_fullStr | Compact Aluminium Foam Heat Exchangers |
| title_full_unstemmed | Compact Aluminium Foam Heat Exchangers |
| title_short | Compact Aluminium Foam Heat Exchangers |
| title_sort | compact aluminium foam heat exchangers |
| topic | open-cell metal foam shell and tube heat exchanger heat transfer pressure drop |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2075-4701/13/8/1440 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT thomasfiedler compactaluminiumfoamheatexchangers AT nimamovahedi compactaluminiumfoamheatexchangers |