convective heat transfer enhancement of non-condensing vertical upward slug flow using capillary-assisted phase separation

TL;DR

This study uses numerical simulations to demonstrate that phase separation with a porous-tube insert significantly enhances convective heat transfer in non-condensing upward slug flows, achieving up to five times higher Nusselt numbers.

Contribution

It introduces a novel porous-tube insert design with phase separation to improve heat transfer in non-condensing slug flows, supported by detailed numerical analysis.

Findings

Counter flow induces internal liquid circulation, boosting heat transfer.

Optimal porous-tube diameter maximizes convective heat transfer.

Maximum Nusselt number increased by about five times compared to bare tube.

Abstract

This paper discusses the convective heat transfer enhancement of non-condensing slug flows by using phase separation for local liquid circulations through a porous-tube insert. Numerical simulations were carried out to study the air-water slug flow and heat transfer without phase change (boiling and condensation) in a vertical upward flow. The governing equations of two-phase flow and heat transfer were numerically solved using the Volume of Fluid-Continuum Surface Force (VOF-CSF) method in a two-dimensional axisymmetric computational domain. The rear end (exit) of the porous tube was open to allow discharge of fluid, but two different designs of the frontal end were considered; a porous tube with a closed front that prevents the bubbles from entering the porous tube and keeps the bubbles in the annular gap; a porous tube with an open front allows the bubbles to flow through the porous tube. Simulation results show that a counter flow of the bulk liquid inside and outside the porous tube creates internal liquid circulations in both the axial and radial directions, resulting in an increased liquid velocity near the tube wall, thus an enhanced convective heat transfer. It is also found that there exists an optimum diameter of the porous-tube-insert (or annular gap dimension between the tube wall and porous tube) for convective heat transfer enhancement. The maximum Nusselt number of the porous-tube-insert cases used in this study was about five times higher than that of the liquid-only flow in a bare tube.