Effect of Geometrical Parameters on Flow Mal-Distribution in a Wavy Microchannel

Abstract:

Microchannels are of current interest for use in heat exchangers, where very high heat transfer performance is desired. Microchannels provide very high heat transfer coefficients because of their small hydraulic diameters. In this study, a numerical investigation of fluid flow in microchannels with varying hydraulic diameters is presented. Six channels with wavy shape are considered. Header is the major part in the microchannel, which supplies fluid into different channels. A CFD model was created to simulate the fluid flow in the header and microchannels. In this work, five different shapes of the header were considered namely circular, frustum conical, rectangular, triangular and trapezoidal. The results from these simulations are presented, and it is observed that the flow distribution is significantly affected by geometrical properties of the channel and the header.

• Periodical: Applied Mechanics and Materials (Volumes 813-814)
• Pages: 674-678
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.4028/www.scientific.net/AMM.813-814.674
• Online since: November 2015
• Authors: M. Satheeshkumar, M.R. Thansekhar*, C. Anbumeenakshi, S. Suresh
• Keywords: Flow Mal-Distribution, Headers, Hydraulic Diameters, Wavy Microchannel

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