Study of Flow Maldistribution inside an Air Conditioning Distributor Using FLUENT Simulation

Abstract:

Flow maldistribution and specifically in distributors has been a major area of study in engineering fluid dynamics. The literature shows some of the work done on the flow distribution in parallel tubes, nozzles, and air conditioning distributors and its effect on the pressure drop as well as the energy losses in the heat exchanger. This study aims at investigating the maldistribution of the flow in various geometries of the distributor, and trying to identify the geometry that causes the least maldistribution. FLUENT 14 software was used to carry out the CFD study in a one-phase flow (liquid), as well as in two-phase flow simulations. The results obtained show that the distributor geometry type 9, has the highest maldistribution, while type 8 has the least. The effects of the dispersion cone, the orifice, as well as erroneous tilting in installation/manufacturing, on maldistribution are also investigated. The orifice might actually lead to more maldistribution. And the cone was shown to have negligible effect on maldistribution.

• Periodical: Applied Mechanics and Materials (Volumes 799-800)
• Pages: 712-719
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.4028/www.scientific.net/AMM.799-800.712
• Online since: October 2015
• Authors: Raghda Heikal*
• Keywords: Air Conditioning, Computational Fluid Dynamics, Fluent, Maldistribution, Two Phase Flow

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