Flow fields in shell-and-tube condensers: comparison of a pure refrigerant and a binary mixture
Journal article, 2005

Detailed 2D CFD calculations for vapour flow field and rate of condensation are carried out for a geometry similar to a real shell-and-tube condenser with 100 tubes, with condensation on the shell-side. The differences in vapour flow behaviour are investigated for pure R22 and for a binary mixture of R32 and R134a, which has a gliding temperature difference of 5.5 K. It is shown that, the flow field for a zeotropic mixture is significantly different from that for a pure fluid. The nature of the mixture flow causes the vapour and condensate to flow counter-currently in part of the condenser. Adjustments of the inlet design turn out to influence the rate of heat transfer by up to 24% for the conditions tested, with greater influence on heat transfer for lower driving forces.

R22

Comparison

R32

Flow

Zeotropic mixture

Vapour

Condenser

Refrigerant

R134a

Author

Lennart Vamling

Industrial Energy Systems and Technologies

International Journal of Refrigeration-Revue Internationale Du Froid

Vol. 28 5 706-713

Subject Categories

Energy Engineering

Fluid Mechanics and Acoustics

More information

Created

10/8/2017