Experimental investigation of heat transfer performance coefficient in tube bundle of shell and tube heat exchanger in two-phase flow

This paper presents the results of studies in two phase gasliquid flow around tube bundle in the model of shell tube heat exchanger. Experimental investigations of heat transfer coefficient on the tubes surface were performed with the aid of electrochemical technique. Chilton-Colburn analogy between heat and mass transfer was used. Twelve nickel cathodes were mounted on the outside surface of one of the tubes. Measurement of limiting currents in the cathodic reduction of ferricyanide ions on nickel electrodes in aqueous solution of equimolar quantities of K3Fe(CN)6 and K4Fe(CN)6 in the presence of NaOH basic solution were applied to determine the mass transfer coefficient. Controlled diffusion from ions at the electrode was observed and limiting current plateau was measured. Measurements were performed with data acquisition equipment controlled by software created for this experiment. Mass transfer coefficient was calculated on the basis of the limiting current measurements. Results of mass transfer experiments (mass transfer coefficient) were recalculated to heat transfer coefficient. During the experiments, simultaneously conducted was the the investigation of two-phase flow structures around tubes with the use of digital particle image velocimetry. Average velocity fields around tubes were created with the use of a number of flow images and compared with the results of heat transfer coefficient calculations.