Numerical investigation of the temporal evolution of particulate fouling in metal foams for air-cooled heat exchangers

Kuruneru, STW; Sauret, E; Saha, SC; Gu, YT

Numerical investigation of the temporal evolution of particulate fouling in metal foams for air-cooled heat exchangers

Kuruneru, STW Sauret, E Saha, SC Gu, YT

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Publisher:: ELSEVIER SCI LTD
Publication Type:: Journal Article
Citation:: Applied Energy, 2016, 184, pp. 531-547
Issue Date:: 2016-12-15

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Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Kuruneru, STW
dc.contributor.author	Sauret, E
dc.contributor.author	Saha, SC
dc.contributor.author	Gu, YT
dc.date.accessioned	2022-07-16T00:22:59Z
dc.date.available	2022-07-16T00:22:59Z
dc.date.issued	2016-12-15
dc.identifier.citation	Applied Energy, 2016, 184, pp. 531-547
dc.identifier.issn	0306-2619
dc.identifier.issn	1872-9118
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/158958
dc.description.abstract	Metal foams have gained popularity in the renewable energy industry due to their superior thermo-physical properties. In the present study, a coupled finite volume and discrete element numerical method is used to numerically investigate the mechanisms that govern particle-laden gas flows and particulate fouling in idealized metal foam air-cooled heat exchangers. This paper provides a systematic analysis of the foulant distribution and the pressure drop due to the metal foam structure and the presence of fouling. The idealized Weaire-Phelan metal foam geometry serves as a good approximation to a real metal foam geometry. The pressure drop and deposition fraction follows a linear relation for sandstone cases, whereas for the sawdust cases, the pressure drop is sensibly invariant with time although a noticeable increase in deposition fraction with time is realized. The foulant residence time in addition to the correlations between pressure drop, deposition fraction, and inlet velocity can be used to optimize metal foam heat exchanger designs. Optimum heat exchanger performance is achieved by keeping the same fiber thickness of 0.17 mm at a high porosity at 97.87%. An increase in fluid carrier velocity promotes particle transport by means of particle interception thereby reducing the deposition fraction irrespective of foam geometry.
dc.language	English
dc.publisher	ELSEVIER SCI LTD
dc.relation.ispartof	Applied Energy
dc.relation.isbasedon	10.1016/j.apenergy.2016.10.044
dc.rights	info:eu-repo/semantics/closedAccess
dc.subject	09 Engineering, 14 Economics
dc.subject.classification	Energy
dc.title	Numerical investigation of the temporal evolution of particulate fouling in metal foams for air-cooled heat exchangers
dc.type	Journal Article
utslib.citation.volume	184
utslib.for	09 Engineering
utslib.for	14 Economics
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology/School of Mechanical and Mechatronic Engineering
utslib.copyright.status	closed_access	*
dc.date.updated	2022-07-16T00:22:57Z
pubs.publication-status	Published
pubs.volume	184

Abstract:

Metal foams have gained popularity in the renewable energy industry due to their superior thermo-physical properties. In the present study, a coupled finite volume and discrete element numerical method is used to numerically investigate the mechanisms that govern particle-laden gas flows and particulate fouling in idealized metal foam air-cooled heat exchangers. This paper provides a systematic analysis of the foulant distribution and the pressure drop due to the metal foam structure and the presence of fouling. The idealized Weaire-Phelan metal foam geometry serves as a good approximation to a real metal foam geometry. The pressure drop and deposition fraction follows a linear relation for sandstone cases, whereas for the sawdust cases, the pressure drop is sensibly invariant with time although a noticeable increase in deposition fraction with time is realized. The foulant residence time in addition to the correlations between pressure drop, deposition fraction, and inlet velocity can be used to optimize metal foam heat exchanger designs. Optimum heat exchanger performance is achieved by keeping the same fiber thickness of 0.17 mm at a high porosity at 97.87%. An increase in fluid carrier velocity promotes particle transport by means of particle interception thereby reducing the deposition fraction irrespective of foam geometry.

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http://hdl.handle.net/10453/158958