Modeling and development of microchannel condenser thermodynamic analysis code used in air conditioning systems

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Faculty of Aerospace, Malek Ashtar University of Technology, Tehran, Iran

2 Faculty of Aerospace, Malek-Ashtar University of Technology, Tehran, Iran

Abstract
Heat exchangers play a very important role in various equipment. The new approach in this field is the use of microchannel heat exchangers, which, by increasing the heat transfer rate per unit of surface area or weight, have become the main candidates for use in different equipment compared to traditional heat exchangers. In refrigeration cycles, these heat exchangers are usually used in air condensers. In this research, an analytical code has been developed for the simulation and design of the microchannel condensers. In this simulation, instead of using the formulas for determining the single-channel heat transfer coefficient such as Dobson and Chato relations, formulas related to multi-channel tubes have been used, which are extracted from reliable and new sources and have high accuracy. This code is written in engineering equation solving software due to having a powerful database for different refrigerants. For the validation of the developed code, four condensers of different dimensions and with different refrigerants were selected to compare the data of the developed code with valid experimental data available for these four condensers as well as the data of past analytical codes. The results show that the accuracy of the developed code is much higher than the previous works and it estimates the heat capacity of the condenser and the temperature of the air and refrigerant side with an error of less than 10%. The developed code provides significant cost savings in the design and optimization process of heat exchangers.

Keywords

Subjects


مراجع
[1] A.A. Al-Rashed, Effect of evaporator temperature on vapor compression refrigeration system, Alexandria Engineering Journal, Vol. 50, pp. 283-290, 2011.
[2] C. Cuevas, D. Makaire, L. Dardenne, P. Ngendakumana, Thermo-hydraulic characterization of a louvered fin and flat tube heat exchanger, Experimental thermal and fluid science, Vol. 35, pp. 154-164, 2011.
[3] K. Pooranachandran, K.S.I.L. Ali, K. Narasingamurthi, V. Ramalingam, Experimental and numerical investigation of a louvered fin and elliptical tube compact heat exchanger, Thermal Science, Vol. 19, pp. 679-692, 2015.
[4] F. Ayad, R. Benelmir, A. Souayed, CO2 evaporators design for vehicle HVAC operation, Applied Thermal Engineering, Vol. 36, pp. 330-344, 2012.
[5] C. Zilio, J.S. Brown, G. Schiochet, A. Cavallini, The refrigerant R1234yf in air conditioning systems, Energy, Vol. 36, pp. 6110-6120, 2011.
[6] A. Agarwal, T.M. Bandhauer, S. Garimella, Measurement and modeling of condensation heat transfer in non-circular microchannels, International journal of refrigeration, Vol. 33, pp. 1169-1179, 2010.
[7] A. Cavallini, D. Del Col, M. Matkovic, L.a. Rossetto, Frictional pressure drop during vapour–liquid flow in minichannels: Modelling and experimental evaluation, International Journal of Heat and Fluid Flow, Vol. 30, pp. 131-139, 2009.
[8] S. Garimella, A. Agarwal, J.D. Killion, Condensation pressure drops in circular microchannels, in:  International Conference on Nanochannels, Microchannels, and Minichannels, pp. 649-656, 2004.
[9] S.G. Kandlikar, Fundamental issues related to flow boiling in minichannels and microchannels, Experimental Thermal and Fluid Science, Vol. 26, pp. 389-407, 2002.
[10] S. Koyama, K. Kuwahara, K. Nakashita, K. Yamamoto, An experimental study on condensation of refrigerant R134a in a multi-port extruded tube, International journal of refrigeration, Vol. 26, pp. 425-432, 2003.
[11] N.-H. Kim, J.-P. Cho, J.-O. Kim, B. Youn, Condensation heat transfer of R-22 and R-410A in flat aluminum multi-channel tubes with or without micro-fins, International Journal of Refrigeration, Vol. 26, pp. 830-839, 2003.
[12] H.S. Wang, J.W. Rose, A theory of film condensation in horizontal noncircular section microchannels, Vol., pp., 2005.
[13] N.A. Qasem, S.M. Zubair, Compact and microchannel heat exchangers: A comprehensive review of air-side friction factor and heat transfer correlations, Energy conversion and management, Vol. 173, pp. 555-601, 2018.
[14] M.M. Rahman, K. Kariya, A. Miyara, An experimental study and development of new correlation for condensation heat transfer coefficient of refrigerant inside a multiport minichannel with and without fins, International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer, Vol. 116, pp. 50-60, 2018.
[15] M. Li, Q. Guo, J. Lv, D. Li, Research on condensation heat transfer characteristics of R447A, R1234ze, R134a and R32 in multi-port micro-channel tubes, International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer, Vol. 118, pp. 637-650, 2018.
[16] A. Başaran, A. Yurddaş, Thermal modeling and designing of microchannel condenser for refrigeration applications operating with isobutane (R600a), Applied Thermal Engineering, Vol. 198, pp. 117446, 2021.
[17] M. Kruzel, T. Bohdal, M. Sikora, Heat transfer and pressure drop during refrigerants condensation in compact heat exchangers, International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer, Vol. 161, pp. 120283, 2020.
[18] R. Vinoth, B. Sachuthananthan, Experimental study of heat transfer and pressure drop characteristics of microtube condenser using R134a, International Journal of Ambient Energy, Vol., pp. 1-6, 2021.
[19] Q.V. Pham, J.-T. Oh, Condensation heat transfer characteristics of R1234yf inside multiport mini-channel tube, International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer, Vol. 170, pp. 121029, 2021.
[20] D. Jige, M. Nobunaga, T. Nogami, N. Inoue, Condensation heat transfer of binary and ternary mixtures inside multiport tubes, International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer, Vol. 207, pp. 123981, 2023.
[21] M.M. Shah, Improved correlation for heat transfer during condensation in mini and macro channels, International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer, Vol. 194, pp. 123069, 2022.
[22] Z. Tian, Z. Huang, S. Xu, K. Li, W. Gao, Direct liquid cooling heat transfer in microchannel: Experimental results and correlations assessment, Applied Thermal Engineering, Vol. 223, pp. 120020, 2023.
[23] M.M. Marinheiro, D.B. Marchetto, G. Furlan, A.T. de Souza Netto, C.B. Tibiriçá, A robust and simple correlation for internal flow condensation, Applied Thermal Engineering, Vol. 236, pp. 121811, 2024.
[24] F. Nie, H. Wang, Y. Zhao, Q. Song, S. Yan, M. Gong, A universal correlation for flow condensation heat transfer in horizontal tubes based on machine learning, International Journal of Thermal Sciences, Vol. 184, pp. 107994, 2023.
[25] M. Moradkhani, S. Hosseini, M. Song, Robust and general predictive models for condensation heat transfer inside conventional and mini/micro channel heat exchangers, Applied Thermal Engineering, Vol. 201, pp. 117737, 2022.
[26] A.D. Litch, P. Hrnjak, Condensation of ammonia in microchannel heat exchangers, in, Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Center. College of Engineering …, 1999.
[27] M.K. Dobson, J.C. Chato, Condensation in smooth horizontal tubes, Vol., pp., 1998.
[28] K.M. Traeger, P.S. Hrnjak, Charge minimization of microchannel heat exchangers, in, Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Center. College of Engineering …, 2005.
[29] M.R. Hoehne, P. Hrnjak, Charge minimization in systems and components using hydrocarbons as a refrigerant, in, Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Center. College of Engineering …, 2004.
[30] Y.-J. Chang, C.-C. Wang, A generalized heat transfer correlation for Iouver fin geometry, International Journal of heat and mass transfer, Vol. 40, pp. 533-544, 1997.
[31] Danfoss Industries Pvt. Ltd., in, https://www.danfoss.com/en/.
[32] T.L. Bergman, T.L. Bergman, F.P. Incropera, D.P. Dewitt, A.S. Lavine, Fundamentals of heat and mass transfer, John Wiley & Sons, 2011.
[33] J. Garcia-Cascales, F. Vera-Garcia, J. Gonzalvez-Macia, J. Corberan-Salvador, M. Johnson, G. Kohler, Compact heat exchangers modeling: Condensation, International Journal of Refrigeration, Vol. 33, pp. 135-147, 2010.
[34] D. Jige, N. Inoue, S. Koyama, Condensation of refrigerants in a multiport tube with rectangular minichannels, International Journal of Refrigeration, Vol. 67, pp. 202-213, 2016.
[35] A. Lobo de Souza, M. de Mattos Pimenta, Prediction of pressure drop during horizontal two-phase flow of pure and mixed refrigerants, ASME-PUBLICATIONS-FED, Vol. 210, pp. 161-172, 1995.
[36] S.W. Churchill, Friction-factor equation spans all fluid-flow regimes, Chemistry Engineerign Journal, Vol. 84, pp. 91-92, 1977.
[37] V. Gnielinski, New equations for heat and mass transfer in turbulent pipe and channel flow, Int. Chem. Eng., Vol. 16, pp. 359-368, 1976.
[38] Sanhua Company, in, https://www.sanhuaeurope.com/en.

  • Receive Date 19 June 2023
  • Revise Date 01 February 2024
  • Accept Date 16 March 2024