Investigating the Effect of Medium Liquid Layer Circulation on Temperature Distribution in a Thermoelectric Generator Heat Exchanger Assembly

2019 ◽  
Vol 141 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ali Amini ◽  
Özgür Ekici ◽  
Kenan Yakut
Keyword(s):  
Heat Exchanger ◽  
Temperature Distribution ◽  
Liquid Layer ◽  
Temperature Difference ◽  
Flow Direction ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Temperature Deviation ◽  
Practical Applications ◽  
Te Modules ◽  
Homogeneous Temperature

Thermoelectric generators (TEGs) are used to produce electricity utilizing two energy reservoirs. Despite the extensive research conducted on thermoelectric (TE) modules, their efficiencies are still low; therefore, any contribution to increase the efficiency of TE modules is valuable. It is known that the efficiency of individual TE modules depends on the temperature difference between their hot and cold faces. In practical applications employing an array of TE modules, the temperature distribution along the flow direction varies, which adversely affects system's efficiency. In this study, it is aimed to attain a homogeneous temperature distribution along a number of TE pieces by focusing on the structure of TEG heat exchanger. The proposed design includes an intermediate layer of liquid that plays a key role in keeping the temperature distribution homogeneous and at the desired temperature difference level. A three-dimensional (3D) computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model was developed for analyzing the circulation of liquid layer and the thermal behavior in the system. Results show decrease in temperature deviation both on cold and hot sides of TE modules, while the decrease is more on the latter. With more homogeneous temperature distribution along the TE surfaces, it is possible to tune the system to operate TE modules in their optimum temperature differences. It is illustrated that the heat transfer rate is increased by 11.71% and the electric power generation is enhanced by 19.95% with the proposed heat exchanger design. The consumption of pumping power has taken into account in the efficiency calculations.

Design of a Novel Heat Exchanger Using in Automobile Exhaust Thermoelectric Generator

2012 ◽  
Vol 430-432 ◽  
pp. 1428-1432
Author(s):  
Rui Quan ◽  
Xin Feng Tang ◽  
Shu Hai Quan ◽  
Ji Guang Wang
Keyword(s):  
Heat Exchanger ◽  
Temperature Distribution ◽  
Surface Temperature ◽  
Temperature Difference ◽  
Thermoelectric Generator ◽  
Thermoelectric Modules ◽  
Automobile Exhaust ◽  
Surface Temperature Distribution ◽  
Output Performance ◽  
Automobile Exhaust Thermoelectric Generator

The output performance of Automobile Exhaust Thermoelectric Generator (AETEG) is related to the temperature difference and electric connection topology of thermoelectric modules, in order to decrease the ring current among the thermoelectric modules in parallel with different temperature difference and enhance the output performance, a novel heat exchanger using in AETEG is designed in this paper. The interior structure of heat exchanger with fishbone is analysed, then its surface temperature distribution is simulated with ANSYS software and experimented with thermal imaging instrument. Both of the results show that the surface temperature distribution of the fishbone heat exchanger designed in this paper is more uniform in lateral direction and dispalys an obvious gradient in fore-and-aft surface, compared with the one of cavity designed before, the novel heat exchanger has overwhelming advantage in the output performance of AETEG, and the method adopted in this paper is feasible and practical.

scholarly journals Numerical Study on Non-Uniform Temperature Distribution and Thermal Performance of Plate Heat Exchanger

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (24) ◽  
pp. 8280
Author(s):  
Jeonggyun Ham ◽  
Gonghee Lee ◽  
Dong-wook Oh ◽  
Honghyun Cho
Keyword(s):  
Heat Exchanger ◽  
Temperature Distribution ◽  
Flow Velocity ◽  
Mass Flow ◽  
Flow Rate ◽  
Temperature Difference ◽  
Plate Heat Exchanger ◽  
Outlet Temperature ◽  
Uniform Temperature ◽  
Plate Heat

In this study, computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis was performed to investigate the cause of the thermal stratification in the channel and the temperature non-uniformity of the plate heat exchanger. The flow velocity maldistribution of the channel and the merging parts caused temperature non-uniformity in the channel width direction. The non-uniformity of flow velocity and temperature in the channel is shown in Section 1 > Section 3 > Section 2 from the heat exchanger. The non-uniform temperature distribution in the channel caused channel stratification and non-uniform outlet temperature. Stratification occurred at the channel near the merging due to the flow rate non-uniformity in the channel. In particular, as the mass flow rate increased from 0.03 to 0.12 kg/s and the effectiveness increased from 0.436 to 0.615, the cold-side stratified volume decreased from 4.06 to 3.7 cm3, and the temperature difference between the stratified area and the outlet decreased from 1.21 K to 0.61 K. The increase in mass flow and the decrease in temperature difference between the cold and hot sides alleviated the non-uniformity of the outlet temperature due to the increase in effectiveness. Besides, as the inlet temperature difference between the cold and the hot side increases, the temperature non-uniformity at the outlet port is poor due to the increase in the stratified region at the channel, and the distance to obtain a uniform temperature in the outlet pipe increases as the temperature at the hot side increases.

scholarly journals Unsteady flow and load in 50% partial admission control stage with different admitting arc distributions

2016 ◽  
Vol 20 (suppl. 3) ◽  
pp. 805-813
Author(s):  
Ke-Ke Gao ◽  
Shun-Sen Wang ◽  
Dong-Bo Shi
Keyword(s):  
Flow Direction ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Exciting Force ◽  
Force Factor ◽  
Unsteady Forces ◽  
Practical Applications ◽  
Pressure Distributions ◽  
Control Stage ◽  
Partial Admission ◽  
Unsteady Loading

Full three-dimensional unsteady numerical investigation on an axial air turbine in 50% partial admission is conducted. The partial admission turbines are under different unsteady loading and unloading process, as well as flow parameters, respectively. The loss coefficient and static pressure distributions at the key position are presented in detail to analyze the nonuniformity originated from partial admission. The results show that the nonuniformity decreases along flow direction and the efficiency of control stage also decreases but with the uniformity improved downstream of the rotors with increasing admitting numbers in equal partial admission degree. The reasons for efficiency decreasing are reasonably explained with windage and sector end losses presented by static entropy distributions. The periodic changes of unsteady forces in amplitude and direction are also compared and transformed in the frequency domain by FFT method. The largest circumferential exciting force factor which is remarkably larger than the corresponding axial exciting force factor decreases by 13.2% with the increase of admitting arc number. Compared with the common distribution of two symmetric admitting arcs, the maximum exciting force factor of triangle admitting arc distribution drops 11.3% with the mere efficiency decrease of 1.32%. The multiple admitting arc turbines are more conducive to be applied to submarines which concerns more about exciting force other than efficiency. Efficiency and unsteady forces are both worth being taken into consideration in the practical applications.

Boundary Condition Design to Heat a Moving Object at Uniform Transient Temperature Using Inverse Formulation

2004 ◽  
Vol 126 (3) ◽  
pp. 619-626 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hakan Ertu¨rk ◽  
Ofodike A. Ezekoye ◽  
John R. Howell
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Condition ◽  
Temperature Distribution ◽  
Design Problem ◽  
Manufacturing Industry ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Chemical Deposition ◽  
Iterative Solution ◽  
Conveyor Belt ◽  
Temperature History ◽  
Transient Temperature

The boundary condition design of a three-dimensional furnace that heats an object moving along a conveyor belt of an assembly line is considered. A furnace of this type can be used by the manufacturing industry for applications such as industrial baking, curing of paint, annealing or manufacturing through chemical deposition. The object that is to be heated moves along the furnace as it is heated following a specified temperature history. The spatial temperature distribution on the object is kept isothermal through the whole process. The temperature distribution of the heaters of the furnace should be changed as the object moves so that the specified temperature history can be satisfied. The design problem is transient where a series of inverse problems are solved. The process furnace considered is in the shape of a rectangular tunnel where the heaters are located on the top and the design object moves along the bottom. The inverse design approach is used for the solution, which is advantageous over a traditional trial-and-error solution where an iterative solution is required for every position as the object moves. The inverse formulation of the design problem is ill-posed and involves a set of Fredholm equations of the first kind. The use of advanced solvers that are able to regularize the resulting system is essential. These include the conjugate gradient method, the truncated singular value decomposition or Tikhonov regularization, rather than an ordinary solver, like Gauss-Seidel or Gauss elimination.

Three-dimensional Graphene Coated Shape Memory Polyurethane Foam with Fast Responsive Performance

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tianjiao Wang ◽  
Jun Zhao ◽  
Chuanxin Weng ◽  
Tong Wang ◽  
Yayun Liu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Shape Memory ◽  
Polyurethane Foam ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Shape Memory Polymers ◽  
Practical Applications ◽  
External Stimuli ◽  
Shape Memory Polyurethane

Shape memory polymers (SMPs) that change shapes as designed by external stimuli have become one of the most promising materials as actuators, sensors, and deployable devices. However, their practical applications...

scholarly journals Simulation of Thermal and Electric Field Distribution in Packaged Sausages Heated in a Stationary Versus a Rotating Microwave Oven

Foods ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (7) ◽  
pp. 1622
Author(s):  
Wipawee Tepnatim ◽  
Witchuda Daud ◽  
Pitiya Kamonpatana
Keyword(s):  
Temperature Distribution ◽  
Electric Field ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Development Stage ◽  
Microwave Oven ◽  
Computational Time ◽  
Plastic Package ◽  
Heating Uniformity ◽  
The Cost ◽  
Good Agreement

The microwave oven has become a standard appliance to reheat or cook meals in households and convenience stores. However, the main problem of microwave heating is the non-uniform temperature distribution, which may affect food quality and health safety. A three-dimensional mathematical model was developed to simulate the temperature distribution of four ready-to-eat sausages in a plastic package in a stationary versus a rotating microwave oven, and the model was validated experimentally. COMSOL software was applied to predict sausage temperatures at different orientations for the stationary microwave model, whereas COMSOL and COMSOL in combination with MATLAB software were used for a rotating microwave model. A sausage orientation at 135° with the waveguide was similar to that using the rotating microwave model regarding uniform thermal and electric field distributions. Both rotating models provided good agreement between the predicted and actual values and had greater precision than the stationary model. In addition, the computational time using COMSOL in combination with MATLAB was reduced by 60% compared to COMSOL alone. Consequently, the models could assist food producers and associations in designing packaging materials to prevent leakage of the packaging compound, developing new products and applications to improve product heating uniformity, and reducing the cost and time of the research and development stage.

scholarly journals Effect of buried depth on thermal performance of a vertical U-tube underground heat exchanger

Open Physics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 327-330
Author(s):  
Li Yang ◽  
Bo Zhang ◽  
Jiří Jaromír Klemeš ◽  
Jie Liu ◽  
Meiyu Song ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Heat Transfer ◽  
Heat Exchanger ◽  
Fluid Velocity ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Simplified Model ◽  
Two Dimensional ◽  
Construction Sites ◽  
Full Size ◽  
Unit Depth ◽  
Research Show

Abstract Many researchers numerically investigated U-tube underground heat exchanger using a two-dimensional simplified pipe. However, a simplified model results in large errors compared to the data from construction sites. This research is carried out using a three-dimensional full-size model. A model validation is conducted by comparing with experimental data in summer. This article investigates the effects of fluid velocity and buried depth on the heat exchange rate in a vertical U-tube underground heat exchanger based on fluid–structure coupled simulations. Compared with the results at a flow rate of 0.4 m/s, the results of this research show that the heat transfer per buried depth at 1.0 m/s increases by 123.34%. With the increase of the buried depth from 80 to 140 m, the heat transfer per unit depth decreases by 9.72%.

Analysis of the Thermal Stress at the Tubesheet in Floating-Head or U-Tube Heat Exchangers

2017 ◽  
Vol 139 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jiuyi Liu ◽  
Caifu Qian ◽  
Huifang Li
Keyword(s):  
Thermal Stress ◽  
Heat Exchanger ◽  
Temperature Difference ◽  
Heat Exchangers ◽  
Influence Factors ◽  
Area Ratio ◽  
Shell Side ◽  
Tube Heat Exchanger ◽  
Numerical Tests ◽  
Hole Area

Thermal stress is an important factor influencing the strength of a heat exchanger tubesheet. Some studies have indicated that, even in floating-head or U-tube heat exchangers, the thermal stress at the tubesheet is significant in magnitude. For exploring the value, distribution, and the influence factors of the thermal stress at the tubesheet of these kind heat exchangers, a tubesheet and triangle arranged tubes with the tube diameter of 25 mm were numerically analyzed. Specifically, the thermal stress at the tubesheet center is concentrated and analyzed with changing different parameters of the tubesheet, such as the temperature difference between tube-side and shell-side fluids, tubesheet diameter, thickness, and the tube-hole area ratio. It is found that the thermal stress of the tubesheet of floating-head or U-tube heat exchanger was comparable in magnitude with that produced by pressures, and the distribution of the thermal stress depends on the tube-hole area and the temperature inside the tubes. The thermal stress at the center of the tubesheet surface is high when tube-hole area ratio is very low. And with increasing the tube-hole area ratio, the stress first decreases rapidly and then increases linearly. A formula was numerically fitted for calculating the thermal stress at the tubesheet surface center which may be useful for the strength design of the tubesheet of floating-head or U-tube heat exchangers when considering the thermal stress. Numerical tests show that the fitted formula can meet the accuracy requirements for engineering applications.

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