Effect of the plate thermal resistance on the heat transfer performance of a corrugated thin plate heat exchanger

• Published in: Heat transfer, Asian research Vol. 35; no. 3; pp. 209 - 223
• Main Authors: Iwai, Hiroshi, Tatsumi, Kazuya, Suzuki, Kenjiro
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Hoboken Wiley Subscription Services, Inc., A Wiley Company 01.05.2006
• Subjects: conjugate heat transfer; corrugated thin plate; heat exchanger; heat exchanger, conjugate heat transfer, numerical simulation, corrugated thin plate, temperature effectiveness, low Reynolds number; low Reynolds number; numerical simulation; temperature effectiveness
• ISSN: 1099-2871; 1523-1496
• DOI: 10.1002/htj.20110

Two‐dimensional conjugate conduction/convection numerical simulations were carried out for flow and thermal fields in a unit model of a counter‐flow‐type corrugated thin plate heat exchanger core. The effects of the thermal resistance of the solid plate, namely the variation of the plate thickness and the difference of the plate material, on the heat exchanger performance were examined in the Reynolds number range of 100<Re<400. Higher temperature effectiveness was obtained for a thicker plate at any Reynolds number, which was a unique feature of corrugated thin plate geometry. Detailed discussions on the thermal fields revealed that restricting the heat conduction along the plate by making the plate thinner or choosing a low thermal conductivity material causes a larger plate temperature variation along the plate, and, consequently, a smaller amount of thermal energy exchanged between two fluids. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Heat Trans Asian Res, 35(3): 209–223, 2006; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/htj.20110