International Journal of Multiphase Flow 37 (2011) 576584

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International Journal of Multiphase Flow

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/ijmulow

Experimental distribution of phases and pressure drop in a two-phase offset strip n type compact heat exchanger
Selma Ben Saad a,b,, Patrice Clment a, Caroline Gentric b,1, Jean-Franois Fourmigu a, Jean-Pierre Leclerc b
a b

LITEN/LETh, CEA Grenoble, 17 rue des martyrs, 38054 Grenoble Cedex 9, France Laboratoire Ractions et Gnie des Procds (LRGP), UPR 3349, CNRS-ENSIC-INPL, 1 rue Grandville, BP 20451, 54001 Nancy, France

a r t i c l e

i n f o

a b s t r a c t
Uniform distribution of uids is crucial to obtain high performance in compact heat exchangers. Maldistribution has been studied by many authors, especially for parallel channels heat exchangers. But theoretical models and experimental studies for predicting ow maldistribution in offset strip ns exchangers are scarce. Offset strip ns, besides their higher thermal hydraulic performances, favour lateral distribution due to their geometry. In this work, an experimental investigation has been carried out for this type of heat exchanger. The experimental set-up consists in a at vertical compact heat exchanger (1 m 1 m area and 7.13 mm thickness) equipped with offset strip ns with a hydraulic diameter of 1.397 mm. Air and water are the working uids. The ow rates of each phase in seven zones regularly distributed at the outlet have been measured as well as the pressures at the inlet, the outlet and two intermediate positions. These measurements were completed with visualisations using a high-speed camera. First, the single-phase ow has been investigated. A correlation for friction factor has been derived from experiments covering laminar, transition and turbulent regimes. CFD simulations of the single-phase ow have been performed. The numerical results were compared with the determined correlation and with correlations available in the literature. In single-phase ow, a uniform distribution was experimentally observed. Then, the two-phase hydrodynamics was characterised. A ow regime map was established and the inuences of phases inlet directions (co-current and counter-current inlets of the phases) and of supercial velocities on the distribution were studied. The gas supercial velocity has more effect on the distribution than the liquid one. Comparison between pressure drop proles and ow rate distribution proles shows that information about pressure drop can provide information about phase distribution. It must be noticed that the nonuniform distribution of phases can entail the coexistence of several ow regimes in the heat exchanger. 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Article history: Received 20 October 2010 Received in revised form 17 March 2011 Accepted 20 March 2011 Available online 13 April 2011 Keywords: Compact heat exchangers Offset strip ns Two-phase ow Flow distribution Flow regimes Pressure distribution CFD

1. Introduction The use of compact heat exchangers for both single- and twophase applications in the process industries has increased in recent years. Offset strip ns heat exchangers are interesting because they present high heat transfer areas per unit volume. They offer the possibility of integrating various processes (up to 20 uids owing simultaneously through a single heat exchanger) over a wide range of dimensions. Brazed aluminium platen heat exchangers are especially suitable for processes requiring a high level of heat

Corresponding author at: LITEN/LETh, CEA Grenoble, 17 rue des martyrs, 38054 Grenoble Cedex 9, France. Tel.: +33 4 38 78 45 12. E-mail address: selma.bensaad-haddad@cea.fr (S.B. Saad). 1 Present address: Laboratoire Gnie des Procds-Environnement-Agroalimentaire (GEPEA), UMR 6144, Universit de Nantes CNRS, CRTT, Boulevard de lUniversit BP 406, 44602 Saint-Nazaire Cedex, France.
0301-9322/$ - see front matter 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.ijmultiphaseow.2011.03.009

transfer under low temperature difference (12 C or less) between warm and cold uids. The platen heat exchangers have many industrial applications: separation of air gases, hydrocarbon processing, natural gas liquefaction and industrial gas liquefaction (oxygen, nitrogen, argon, helium, etc.). Recent studies, both numerical and experimental, have determined relations between thermalhydraulic performances and ow distribution in compact heat exchangers. The thermalhydraulic performances of such heat exchangers are strongly inuenced by their geometry and ow conguration. Offset strip ns heat exchangers have been studied by several researchers (Bhowmik and Lee, 2009; Lihua et al., 2008; Manglik and Bergles, 1995; Kays and London, 1984). Nevertheless, general correlations for the friction factor f are scarce. The main correlation used in industry is the Manglik and Bergles correlation (Manglik and Bergles, 1995), which was determined from experimental data obtained for 18 offset strip ns types. This correlation predicts the friction factor as a single continuous

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function of n geometrical parameters and of Reynolds number and can be used in the laminar, transition and turbulent ow regimes. But the equation is complex and the uncertainty for the prediction of friction factor f is 20%. Bhowmik and Lee (2009) carried out a numerical study to provide a single correlation covering all regimes. But no correlation has been developed for all n types. Manglik and Bergles indicated that more experiments should be done to extend the correlation validity, especially for liquid as working uid. Wieting (1975) tested 23 samples and Kays and London (1984) 21 samples of offset strip ns with different geometrical parameters. Since these correlations were established for different operating parameters, such as manufacturing aspects and testing conditions, it is difcult to explain the variations between the friction factors they predict. Lihua et al. (2008) tested experimentally 16 samples of offset strip n cores with different ow angles (angle between the uid ow orientation and the n surface), n heights, n lengths and n widths. They concluded that, among the considered geometries, the ow angle had the strongest inuence on the n performance. Numerical analyses were done to predict ow friction factors and validate experimental results. Peng and Ling (2008) performed 3D CFD simulations to predict friction factors characteristics of serrated ns in a compact heat exchanger. For two-phase ows, one of the factors that most strongly inuence the performance of compact heat exchangers is the degree of ow rate uniformity in the channels where heat transfer occurs. The good distribution in the bottom zone of the heat exchanger is important to obtain an homogeneous phase change across the whole heat transfer zone and to avoid too large regions with vapour only. The studies of Marchitto et al. (2008, 2009) about the two-phase distribution in parallel channels heat exchangers conrm the complexity of this two-phase ow distribution. Their experiments with air and water have been carried out in a horizontal cylindrical two-phase ow header supplying 16 vertical channels and have shown the strong inuence of the operating conditions on the two-phase ow pattern and on the ow distribution in the channels. The uid tends to go preferentially into the channels that face the inlet tube (Marchitto et al., 2008; Kim and Sin, 2006). The effects of ow maldistribution have been studied and discussed by many authors (Marchitto et al., 2008; Kim and Sin, 2006). For the optimal design of plate heat exchangers, the effect of the ow arrangement on pressure drop has to be taken into account (Raquel et al., 2008). The study of Marchitto et al. (2008) has shown that the gas phase was preferentially distributed into the rst channels near the inlet of mixing phases, while the liquid phase was generally distributed into the last channels, even at low gas supercial velocities. If the gas ow rate increases, the gas is better distributed, but the liquid phase tends to mal distribute. Thus, the number of tubes (or channels) also affects the ow distribution. An experimental study of a compact heat exchanger with parallel channels as the one of Marchitto et al. but with 30 vertical at tubes was presented by Kim and Sin (2006). They showed that the header diameter and shape, the mass ux and quality affected the ow distribution. Thonon et al. (1992) determined numerically that maldistribution affects pressure drop more than thermal performance. Bassiouny and Martin (1984) predicted a maldistribution parameter that depends on the area, number of plates and average friction. The objective of the present study is to address the above mentioned problem of mal distribution in offset strip ns compact heat exchangers and to determine its relation with pressure drop distribution. To focalize the study on hydrodynamics aspects, it has been carried out in an experimental quasi two-dimensional compact heat exchanger test section using air or/and water in adiabatic conditions. The two-dimensional character of the experimental test section allows a visual characterisation of the hydrodynamics. Besides, its width is large enough to put into evidence operating

parameters leading to ow maldistribution. Pressure drop at different locations along the test section and ow rates distribution of both phases among the channels were measured. Firstly, singlephase ow has been characterised in terms of pressure drop and ow rate distribution. The experimental friction factor has been compared to CFD simulation results. For two-phase ows, a regime map was rst established. Pressure drop was measured as well as the ow rate distribution of the gas and liquid phases. By using maldistribution parameters (STD, NSTD), it has been possible to compare the uniformity of the gas and liquid ow rates and thus to determine the relative effectiveness of various inlet congurations and supercial velocities. Comparison between pressure drop proles and ow rate distribution proles shows that information about pressure drop can be useful in real heat exchangers where it is difcult to determine phase distribution. 2. Experimental set-up and operating conditions The experimental set-up is presented in Fig. 1. The test section is a quasi two-dimensional vertical compact heat exchanger (height 1 m, width 1 m, thickness 7.13 mm) and consists in offset strip ns placed between two transparent at plates. The offset strip n type is presented in Fig. 2. The main n geometrical parameters are: n height h, n transverse spacing s, n thickness t and n width l (h = 7.13 mm, s = 0.77 mm, t = 0.2 mm and l = 3.175 mm). Fluids (gas and liquid) injections are designed to obtain easily different inlet ow congurations: co-current or counter-current ows in the distributor (Fig. 3).In the industrial practice, the inlet conguration: co-current or counter-current inlets of phases, depends on the uid main positions relative to the heat exchanger header. It is thus mainly governed by available space for the pipe connections. In the present study, both situations have been tested to determine if one conguration is preferable to the other. This horizontal distributor is rectangular and contains 18 circular orices (diameter d = 1.85 mm) to mix phases before injection into the offset strip n channels. Then, the mixture ows upwards through the test section. At the top, the ow is divided into seven zones regularly distributed on the width. In each zone, gas and liquid are separated and the ow rate of each phase in each zone is measured to appreciate the uniformity of the phase distribution across the exchanger. Two absolute pressure transducers are installed to measure the inlet pressures for gas and liquid. Differential pressure transducers are installed along four horizontal lines to measure pressure drop across the test section at different heights. The distances between pressure lines are: P0 P1 = 213 mm, P0P2 = 433 mm and P2P3 = 425 mm. A system with high-speed camera, light source and acquisition by PC is installed to perform ow visualisation. Experiments are carried out using air and water in adiabatic conditions at ambient temperature and atmospheric pressure. The range of gas and liquid supercial velocities are Vsg = 0.1 1.9 m/s and Vsl = 0.10.39 m/s respectively. The investigated range of supercial gas and liquid velocities is deduced from a real application of brazed platen heat exchanger. Besides, it allows to cover a large range of ow regimes. The pressure at the inlet of the test section varies between 1.1 and 2.5 bar depending on the operating conditions. The total uncertainty in the pressure drop and mass ow rate measurements, taking into account the experimental uncertainty in real experimental conditions, reach up to +5%. 3. Numerical simulations The measured pressure drop characteristics of the single-phase ow in the offset strip n test section were compared to 3D

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Liquid outlet
.

Gas outlet
.

ml m g
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Gas/liquid separators

Visualisation system

P3

P
Distributor

Flow

Test section 1m1m7.13mm

P2

High speed camera

Light source
P1 P0

Liquid inlet

Gas inlet

Fig. 1. Scheme of the experimental set up.

t s
Fig. 2. Geometry of the offset strip ns.

(a)
1

Air
2 3 4

Water
5 6 7

(b)
1

Air
2 3 4

Water
5 6 7

Distributor Air Water Air Water

Fig. 3. Co-current and counter-current inlet congurations of the test section: (a) Co-current uid inlets and (b) Counter-current uid inlets.

simulations using the commercial code Fluent. CFD simulations are based on the resolution of the NavierStokes equations. The standard ke (Launder and Spalding, 1974) as well as the SST kx turbulence models were used to predict the turbulence characteristics. The SST kx model allows for a more accurate near

wall treatment since the kx model is used near the walls and the ke model is employed away from the walls. It should also be more adapted to the hydrodynamics of offset strip n heat exchanger which presents ow separation. The enhanced wall function approach was adopted to predict the wall-bounded turbulent ow.

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3.1. 3D meshes The pre-processor Gambit was used to build the geometry and different grids with increasing mesh renement. The complete test section contains 300 ns along the ow direction; therefore, to reduce the calculation time, the CFD simulation was limited to a geometry containing only ve ns in the ow direction and two channels in the cross section. This calculation domain is shown in Fig. 4. The simulated length allows to observe the ow establishment from the third n. Thus the ow analysis, in particular the pressure drop determination, was based on the ow eld in the zone of the third and fourth ns. Nonuniform mesh was used: the mesh was rened near the walls where velocity gradients are important. The adequacy between the y+ values of the cells adjacent to the walls and the wall treatment was veried a posteriori: the y+ values of those cells were of the order of 1. The mesh is composed of hexahedral cells. Their advantage is that they can be aligned with the main ow direction and provide more accurate ow solution than with tetrahedral or polyhedral meshes. Interface zones were dened at the junction between two successive ns since the mesh is nonconformal at this location. 3.2. Fluid properties and boundary conditions Simulations have been performed with air or water as the uid phase. The liquid viscosity is 103 Pa s and its density is 1000 kg/ m3. For the air, a viscosity of 1.17 105 Pa s and a density of 1.25 kg/m3 are used. The following boundary conditions are considered: At the inlet, uniform velocities were imposed with ow rates corresponding to the experimental conditions. Inlet velocities are in the range 0.11.9 m/s to describe laminar to turbulent regions. A pressure outlet condition has been dened at the outlet. 3.3. Inuence of mesh renement Different grids were tested to determine the inuence of grid renement on simulation results. In order to show that the mesh resolution is sufcient for a given case, the number of cells of the existing case was increased and it was veried that the results became invariable. For the two uids, we used the same mesh resolution. Comparison between the results obtained with mesh renement only near the walls and mesh renement on the whole channel shows only 2% difference. The nonuniform mesh is used because the calculation times are shorter than with uniform mesh.

4. Results and discussion 4.1. Simulated single-phase ow structure Fig. 5 shows a typical calculated ow eld in a vertical midplane for water at Vsl = 0.2 m/s. The vector plot shows the presence of low velocity zones (indicated with circles). They are located downstream of the ns. Flow acceleration can be observed in the passage between two ns. 4.2. Friction factor in single-phase ow Experiments have been conducted to analyse the pressure drop along the test section, rstly for single-phase ow. The total pressure drop is equal to the sum of gravitational, acceleration and friction pressure losses:

    dp dp dp dp dz t dz G dz A dz F

In the present experiments, pressure losses due to gravity and acceleration are negligible compared to the pressure drop due to friction inside the micro channels. The experimental results were compared to literature correlations and to CFD results in terms of friction factors. The pressure drop (DP) of serrated ns is related to the friction factor f by the following equation:

Dh DP 4L 1=2qu2

The experimental value of the friction factor f has thus been deduced from the experimental pressure drop measurements according to Eq. (2). The Reynolds number is dened on the basis of the hydraulic diameter Dh:

ReDh

quDh l

The Manglik and Bergles (1995) correlation is the most often used in industry to predict the friction factor:

f 6:6243Re0:7422 a0:1856 d0:3053 c0:2659 1 7:669 Dh 108 Re4:429 a0:920 d3:767 c0:236 1 Dh
 

4shl s t where Dh 2slhlthts , a h, d tl and c s. The Manglik and Bergles correlation for friction factor was established from literature studies of 18 different geometries and thus corresponds to a large range of geometric parameters. Our hydraulic diameter (Dh = 1.397 mm) lies in the range of diameters examined by Manglik and Bergles (1995). The experimental,

Fins 2 and 4 Fins 1 and 3

Low velocities zones

High velocities zones

Symmetry Flow direction

Fig. 4. Calculation domain. Fig. 5. Simulated velocity contours and ow eld in a vertical plane parallel to the test section walls Results obtained for water at Vsl = 0.1 m/s.

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simulated, and Manglik and Bergles friction factors are compared for low Prandtl (air Pr = 0.7) and for high Prandtl number (water Pr = 7) in Fig. 6. The friction factor is decreasing for increasing Reynolds numbers. Comparing friction factors for air and water conrms the result of Bhowmik and Lee (2009) who showed that f is not affected by the Prandtl number. The regime transitions can be deduced from a change in the slope of the experimental variation of friction factor with Reynolds number. The laminar zone is observed for ReDh < 500, the transition for 500 < ReDh < 1250 and the turbulent zone corresponds to ReDh > 1250. Numerical simulations using Fluent show good agreement with measurements in the laminar ow regime except at very low Reynolds number where a difference of 15% is observed. The same discrepancy was already noticed by Peng and Ling (2008) for ReDh < 200 and by others authors. The regime transitions are well predicted by CFD. But a deviation between experimental and numerical values of about 35% exists in the transition and turbulent regimes when the ke model is used. This discrepancy may be due to the complex ow structure around the ns which is not accurately taken into account via two-equation turbulence models based on the Boussinesq hypothesis. The SST kx model presents the same problem in the transition regime but allows satisfying f predictions for turbulent ow (8% of difference), in fact it allows a better description of ows presenting separation as in the considered geometry. The Manglik and Bergles correlation has been established for Reynolds numbers from 120 to 104, so its extrapolation for

1.00
simulation "fluent" Experimental points Manglik and Bergles (1995) Bhowmik and Lee (2009) Joshi and Webb (1987) Mochiziki et al. (1987) Wieting (1975) Manson (1950)

0.10

0.01 10

100

1000

10000

Re
Fig. 7. Experimental friction factor compared with correlations in the literature (see above mentioned references for further information).

Re < 120 does not show good accordance with experiments. For Re > 120, the Manglik and Bergles correlation shows good accordance with experimental points. Fig. 7. shows large differences between friction factor predictions for offset strip ns according to different literature correlations. This is due to the difference in the geometrical parameters used by the authors. The following correlation for the friction factor describing all regimes has been obtained from our measurements:

(a)

f 20:362Re0:7661 Dh
Simulation (Fluent) Experimental points Manglik and Bergles (1995)

The analysis of literature results and of the obtained experimental data shows that there is a need to increase experimental and numerical studies to better understand the inuence of geometrical parameters on the hydraulic characteristics of offset strip ns and to develop general correlations describing friction factors adapted to different offset strip ns types. 4.3. Distribution in single-phase ow Before characterising two-phase ows, which present much more complexity, ow rate and pressure drop distributions in single-phase ows must be evaluated. A good ow rate distribution along the seven zones is observed for water and for air as shown in Fig. 8 where the ow ratio is dened as follows:

0 0 50 100 150 200

Re

(b)

1.000

Flow ratio
Experimental points k- standard k-w SST simulation(laminar region) Manglik and Bergles (1995)

Qi Q

i 1; 7

0.100

where Qi is the ow rate of a phase in zone i and Q is the average ow rate in a zone. This good owrate distribution corresponds to a uniform pressure drop distribution in the exchanger parts containing offset strip ns, i.e. between the horizontal levels P1P2 and P2P3 respectively as presented in Fig. 9 (the positions of the pressure drop measurements P0P3 are dened in Fig. 1). For the distribution zone (P0P1), the pressure drop is maximal near the inlet (zone 7) and decreases along the distributor which can be explained by the distributor geometry and conrms the distributor high efciency. 4.4. Flow patterns in two-phase ow

0.010 100

1000

10000

Re
Fig. 6. Friction factors from experimental and numerical results and from the Manglik and Bergles correlation: (a) low Prandtl (air Pr = 0.7) and (b) higher Prandtl (water Pr = 7).

Fig. 10 shows different ow behaviours observed using a highspeed camera. The ow patterns observed in the micro channels are bubbly ow, slug ow and churn ow. The slug ow pattern is characterised by elongated bubbles. In the region of high gas

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(a)
1.2 1

0.6 0.4 1 2 0.2 3 4 0 5 6 7 2.1 8 13.4 34.6

Zones

Q (m3/h)

(b)
1.2 1

Flow ratio

0.8 0.6 0.4 1 2 3 4 0.2 5 6 7 2.4 3.5 7.2 0

Flow ratio

0.8

The transition from bubble to slug ow comes for larger supercial gas velocities than the transition line of Taitel et al. This can be explained by the narrow width of the offset strip n channels (l = 770 lm). Desrats (2006) ow map was established in an offset strip ns heat exchanger with Dh = 1.4 mm for boiling propane. The transition from bubbly, slug and churn are shifted to the low gas supercial velocity compared to our results due to the differences of uid properties and boiling mechanism. Triplett et al. (1999) investigated ow regimes in circular channels (1.097 mm diameter) using airwater mixtures. The slug/churn ow transition of the present study is obtained for the same conditions as the churn/annular transition of Triplett et al. In parallel adjacent channels, different distributions of gas and liquid can be observed across the test section. This can entail the simultaneous presence of different ow patterns at given inlet ow rates of gas and liquid. For example, the three regimes are seen in different regions of the compact heat exchanger for the three conditions indicated with circles in Fig. 11. The following study of phase distribution characterisation and pressure drop analysis covers this large range of regimes. 4.5. Pressure drop and ow rate distributions in two-phase ow The standard deviation (STD) and Normalised standard deviation (NSTD) parameters have been used by Marchitto et al. (2008) and by other authors. These parameters reect the quality of the distribution of the two phases under different operating conditions. They indicate how a particular zone ow rate deviates from the average ow rate per zone. The smaller their value is, the more uniform the ow distribution is. They have been used in the present work to compare the quality of the ow distribution at different ow rates and different ow congurations.

Zones

6.4

Q (m3/h)

Fig. 8. Flow rate distributions along the seven outlet zones of the compact heat exchanger test section: (a) water and (b) air.

STDk
P1-P2

r XN m 12 =N k;j j1

160 140

P1-P3 P0-P1

with

Pressure drop (mbar)

m PN k;j

mk;j

120 100 80 60 40 20 0 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

j1 mk;j =N

k g; l

and N the number of channels.

STDk NSTDk STDk max

r XN m 12 =NN 1 k;j j1

The liquid and gas supercial velocities are dened by the following equations:

zones
Fig. 9. Single phase (water, Vsl = 0.35 m/s) pressure drop distributions.

V sl

Ql S Qg S

V sg

10

supercial velocities, churn ow can appear. It is characterised by the simultaneous presence of several ow patterns: bubbles with different diameters, slug ow and annular ow. Our ow regime experimental points are superimposed to the Taitel et al. (1980), the Triplett et al. (1999) and the Desrats (2006) ow regime maps in Fig. 11. The Taitel et al. (1980) map was established from experimental results obtained with vertical pipes of 2060 mm diameter and airwater ow. They distinguished bubbly, dispersed bubbly, slug, churn and annular ow regimes and suggested physical mechanisms for each ow transition. The slug/churn transition for our compact heat exchanger is the same as the one of Taitel et al.

where Ql, Qg are the volume ow rates of liquid and gas and S is the cross sectional area between ns. Theoretically, the ow maldistribution is linked to pressure variations. The pressure drop distribution for the air/water mixture is presented in Fig. 12 (Vsl = 0.35 m/s, Vsg = 1.9 m/s, counter-current conguration). The distribution of the ow rates in terms of gas and liquid ow ratio along the seven zones dividing the test section is illustrated in Fig. 13 for contre-current uid inlets. At a constant low value of Vsl (Vsl = 0.13 m/s) and for increasing values of Vsg, the experimental distribution of the two phases at the outlet is presented in Fig. 13a. For a higher value of Vsl (Vsl = 0.35 m/s) and for the same increasing values of Vsg, the characteristics of the distribution do not change as can be seen in Fig. 13b.

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(a)
Bubbly flow Vsg=0.39 m/s Vsl=0.23 m/s

(b)
Slug flow Vsg=0.826 m/s Vsl=0.42 m/s

(c)
Churn flow Vsg=2.05 m/s Vsl=0.42 m/s

Gas bubble

Gas slug Gas-liquid interface Liquid

Fig. 10. Flow regimes: (a) bubbly ow; (b) slug ow and (c) churn ow.

Churn flow Liquid superficial velocity Vsl (m/s)

Bubbly flow

Slug flow

Gas superficial velocity Vsg (m/s)

C.Desrats (2006) Bubbly Slug Churn Triplett flow pattern transitions lines Dh=1.097mm (1999) bubbly Slug-Annular Slug Churn Annular

Taitel et al. (1980)

This study (Dh =1.397mm) Bubbly Slug Churn

Fig. 11. Flow regimes versus gas and liquid supercial velocities comparisons with Taitel et al. (1980) and Triplett et al. (1999) and Desrats (2006) maps.

At low gas supercial velocity (Vsg = 0.12 m/s), the gas phase is present in the rst zones near the gas inlet (zones 1 and 2). While the gas ow rate increases, the distribution of the gas becomes more and more uniform. For all the investigated ow rates, the liquid is mainly present near its inlet and the liquid ow rate decreases going from zone 7 to 1. Furthermore, the liquid maldistribution increases while increasing Vsg. We observe that the liquid ow rate has less effect than the gas ow rate on the ow distribution at the outlet. This behaviour has already been ob-

served by different authors (Marchitto et al., 2008; Horiki and Osakabe, 1999; Kim and Sin, 2006) in parallel channels compact heat exchangers. The pressure drop of the two-phase mixture is plotted in Fig. 12. In the distributor zone (P0P1), a decreasing pressure drop from the side of the liquid inlet to the other side can be observed. This result is similar to the single phase water distribution. The pressure drop in the zone (P1P3) is still nonuniform. For bubble ow regime in the distributor, the pressure drop depends on both the

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200

P1-P2 P1-P3

Pressure drop (mbar)

160

P0-P1

120

80

40

0 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

zones
Fig. 12. Pressure drop distribution for the two-phase ow (Vsl = 0.35 m/s and Vsg = 1.9 m/s) for counter-current uid inlets.

(a)

4 3.5 3

Flow ratio

2.5 2 1.5 1 0.5 0 0 2 4

Vsg=0.12 m/s STDg=1.42 Vsg=0.44 m/s STDg=0.87 Vsg=0.73 m/s STDg=0.56 Vsg=1.9 m/s STDg=0.26 Vsg=0.12 m/s STDl=0.36 Vsg=0.44 m/s STDl=0.56 Vsg=0.73 m/s STDl=0.64 Vsg=1.9 m/s STDl=0.78

Liquid phase Gas phase

Zones

Fig. 14. View of real distribution in counter-current conguration: (a) Vsl = 0.35 m/s and Vsg = 1.9 m/s; (b) Vsl = 0.13 m/s and Vsg = 0.73 m/s.

(b)
Flow ratio

4 3.5 3 2.5 2 1.5 1 0.5 0 0 2 4

Standard Deviation STDk

Vsg=0.12 m/s STDg=0.98 Vsg=0.44 m/s STDg=0.80 Vsg=0.73 m/s STDg=0.73 Vsg=1.9 m/s STDg=0.48 Vsg=0.12 m/s STDl=0.33 Vsg=0.44 m/s STDl=0.34 Vsg=0.73 m/s STDl=0.42 Vsg=1.9 m/s STDl=0.65

1.6
Liquid phase Gas phase

1.4 1.2 1 0.8 0.6 0.4 0.2 0 0.12 0.44

1 0.8 0.6 0.4 0.2 0

Zones
Fig. 13. Proles of gas and liquid ow ratio at the outlet of the compact offset strip n heat exchanger for counter-current uid inlets: (a) Vsl = 0.13 m/s and (b) Vsl = 0.35 m/s.

0.73

1.9

Gas superficial velocity (m/s)

Fig. 15. Gas and liquid standard deviations as a function of gas supercial velocity for counter-current uid inlets.

liquid and the gas Reynolds numbers (Eisenklam and Ford, 1962). Since the liquid ow rate has more inuence on the pressure drop than the gas ow rate, the aspects of the pressure drop and the liquid phase distributions are quite similar. Association of Figs. 12 and 13 show that the pressure drop prole at the outlet is similar to the liquid distribution aspect. All these behaviours are represented with real images in Fig. 14. The ns outlet, divided in seven zones along the test section, can be observed. The agitated zones with white colour indicate the presence of the gas phase. When the free surface of water is seen clearly, it indicates the presence of water only. We observe in Fig. 14a that all zones are agitated. By contrast, Fig. 14b shows

the existence of phase agitation in four zones only and the remaining zones contain only water. To better see the supercial velocities effects on the ow distribution, Fig. 15 presents the STD and NSTD parameters variations for both phases. When the gas ow rate increases, the STDg decreases, thus the distribution of the gas phase is more uniform, but at the same time, the STDl increases and the liquid lls only the rst zones from the inlet. Typical distribution proles were also studied in co-current inlets conguration. Distributions for a constant liquid supercial velocity

Normalized Standard Deviation NSTDk

STDg Vsl=0.13 m/s NSTDg Vsl=0.13 m/s STDg Vsl=0.35 m/s NSDg Vsl=0.35 m/s STDl Vsl=0.13 m/s NSTDl Vsl=0.13 m/s STDl Vsl=0.35 m/s NSDl Vsl=0.35 m/s

1.6 1.4 1.2

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4 3.5 3

Flow ratio

2.5 2 1.5 1 0.5 0 0 2

Vsg=0,12 m/s STDg=0,79 Vsg=0,44 m/s STDg=0,55 Vsg=0,73 m/s STDg=0,45 Vsg=1,9 m/s STDg=0,14 Vsg=0,12 m/s STDl=0,53 Vsg=0,44 m/s STDl=0,57 Vsg=0,73 m/s STDl=0,58 Vsg=1,9 m/s STDl=0,61

Liquid phase Gas phase

Zones
Fig. 16. Effects of gas and liquid supercial velocities in the distribution of two phases for co-current uid inlets (Vsl = 0. 13 m/s).

phase ow regimes have been investigated and a ow map was established in vertical airwater ow conguration. Distributions of pressure drop and of the two phases were experimentally studied. The pressure drop prole study inside the distributor is very important to be able to describe phases distribution inside the channels. Co-current and counter-current uid inlets have been tested and the position of the injection of air and water has been shown to have an important effect on the distribution. The analysis of the results for varying supercial velocities of gas and liquid proves that the quality of two-phase ow distribution is more affected by the gas supercial velocity than by the liquid one. The co-current inlets conguration allows a more uniform uids distribution both for the gas and liquid phases. This work constitutes a rst step in the optimisation of the design of platen heat exchanger. Acknowledgement This work has been supported by the ADEME French Environment and Energy Management Agency. References
Bassiouny, M.K., Martin, H., 1984. Flow distribution and pressure drop in plate heat exchangers I. Chem. Eng. Sci. 39, 693700. Bhowmik, H., Lee, K.-S., 2009. Analysis of heat transfer and pressure drop characteristics in an offset strip n heat exchanger. Int. Commun. Heat Mass Transfer 36, 259263. Desrats, C., 2006. Etude exprimentale de lbullition convective dhydrocarbures dans les changeurs plaques et ailettes Analyse des coulements et des transferts de chaleur par une approche locale, Thse de luniversit de Provence Aix-Marseille. Eisenklam, P., Ford, L.H., 1962. On the interaction of uids and solids. Inst. Chem. Eng. Lond., 333344. Horiki, S., Osakabe, M., 1999. Water ow distribution in horizontal protruding-type header contaminated with bubbles. Proc. ASME Heat Transfer Div. 2, 6976. Joshi, H.M., Webb, R.L., 1987. Heat-transfer and friction in the offset strip n heat exchanger. Int. J. Heat Mass Transfer 30, 6984. Kays, W.M., London, A.L., 1984. Compact Heat Exchangers, third ed. New York. Kim, N.-H., Sin, T.-R., 2006. Two-phase ow distribution of airwater annular ow in parallel ow heat exchanger. Int. J. Multiph. Flow 32, 13401353. Launder, B.E., Spalding, D.B., 1974. The numerical computer of turbulents ows computer. Methods Appl. Mech. Eng. 3, 269289. Lihua, G., Fren, Q., Jiangping, C., Zhijiu, C., 2008. Lubricant side thermalhydraulic characteristics of steel offset strip ns with different ow angles. Appl. Therm. Eng. 28, 907914. Manglik, R.M., Bergles, A.E., 1995. Heat transfer and pressure drop correlations for rectangular offset strip n compact heat exchanger. Exp. Therm. Fluid Sci. 10, 171180. Manson, S.V., 1950. Correlations of Heat Transfer Data and Friction Data for Interrupt Plain Fins Staggered in Successive Rows, NACA Tech. Note 2237, Washington. Marchitto, A., Fossa, M., Guglielmini, G., 2009. Distribution of airwater mixtures in parallel vertical channels as an effect of the header geometry. Exp. Therm. Fluid Sci. 33, 895902. Marchitto, A., Devia, F., Fossa, M., Guglielmini, G., Schenone, C., 2008. Experiments on two-phase ow distribution inside parallel channels of compact heat exchangers. Int. J. Multiph. Flow 34, 128144. Mochizuki, S., Yagi, Y., Yang, W.-J., 1987. Transport phenomena in stacks of interrupted parallel plate surfaces. Exp. Heat Transfer 1, 127140. Peng, H., Ling, X., 2008. Numerical modeling and experimental verication of ow and heat transfer over serrated ns at low Reynolds number. Exp. Therm. Fluid Sci. 32, 10391048. Raquel, Y.M., Flavio, C.C.G., Carmen, C.T., Jorge, A.W.G., 2008. The effect of ow arrangement on the pressure drop of plate heat exchangers. Chem. Eng. Sci. 63, 53865393. Taitel, Y., Bornea, D., Duckler, A.E., 1980. Modelling ow pattern transitions for steady upward gasliquid ow in vertical tubes. AIChE J. 26, 345354. Thonon, B., Mercier, P., Feidt, M., 1992. Flow distribution in plate heat exchangers and consequences on thermal and hydraulic performances. In: Design and Operation of Heat Exchangers. Springer Verlag, pp. 245254. Triplett, K.A., Ghiaasiaan, S.M., Abdel-Khalik, S.I., Sadowski, D.L., 1999. Gasliquid two-phase ow in microchannels. Part I: two-phase ow patterns. Int. J. Multiph. Flow 25, 377394. Wieting, A.R., 1975. Empirical correlation for heat transfer data and of ow friction characteristics of rectangular offset strip n plateplate heat exchangers. Int. J. Heat Transfer 97, 488490.

1.6 1.4
STDg Vsl=0,13 m/s NSTDg Vsl=0,13 m/s STDl Vsl=0,13 m/s NSTDl Vsl=0,13 m/s

1.6 1.4

Standard Deviation STDk

1.2 1 0.8 0.6 0.4 0.2 0 0.12 0.44

1 0.8 0.6 0.4 0.2 0 0.73 1.9

Gas superficiel velocity (m/s)

Fig. 17. Gas and liquid standard deviation as a function of gas supercial velocity for co-current uid inlets.

(Vsl = 0.13 m/s) and for increasing values of the gas supercial velocity are shown in Fig. 16. At the lowest gas supercial velocity, the gas phase ows mainly into the rst zones and forces the liquid to go to the opposite zone. With increasing Vsg, gas distribution becomes more uniform: its presence in the last zones increases and STDg decreases. For increasing supercial gas velocity, the STDg and NSTDg decrease but STDl and NSTDl increase (Fig. 17). Comparison between Figs. 13a and 16 on the one hand and between 15 and 17 on the other hand shows that the co-current inlets conguration allows a more uniform uids distribution both for the gas and liquid phases. So in practice, if both congurations are possible, co-currents phases inlets would allow a better efciency of the heat exchanger than the counter-current inlets. Finally, for the two congurations studied (co-current and counter-current uids inlets), the phase distribution aspect is mainly affected by the supercial velocity of the gas phase. 5. Conclusions In this paper, the hydrodynamics of an offset strip ns heat exchanger has been investigated. A correlation for single phase friction factor in offset strip n microchannels has been established for laminar to turbulent ow of water and air and compared with 3D CFD simulations. With a high-speed camera technique, two-

Normalised Standard Deviation NSTDk

1.2