Passive enhancement of condensation heat transfer

R. K. Al-Dadah*, T. G. Karayiannis

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

8 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Integral fin tubes are commonly used in the condensers of refrigeration, air conditioning and process industries especially where low surface tension fluids are used. In the last few decades, several three dimensional (3D) enhanced surfaces were developed for condensation heat exchangers. Also, several improvements were introduced to the standard integral finned tubes which resulted in a performance comparable to that of the 3D enhanced surfaces. Some of these improvements include optimisation of the fin specifications and the fin profile to make use of the surface tension and gravity forces, the use of ribs on the surface of the fins and the inclusion of drainage techniques. A review of the experimental and theoretical work used to augment the performance of integral finned tubes is presented in this paper. This is followed with a review of the 3D surfaces developed and a comparison between the integral fin tubes and the 3D surfaces. Performance in bundles and the effect of vapour shear are specific issues that were considered in the comparison.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)895-909
Number of pages15
JournalApplied Thermal Engineering
Volume18
Issue number9-10
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Jan 1998

Keywords

  • Condensation
  • Enhancement
  • Passive

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Energy Engineering and Power Technology
  • Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering

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