EXPERIMENTAL INVESTIGATION OF THE PERFORMANCE OF A SHELL AND TUBE HEAT EXCHANGER WITH HELICALLY COILED CORRUGATED TUBE

Abstract

The study involved a series of experiments to examine the heat transfer behaviour of shell-and-tube heat exchangers with a helically coiled corrugated tube. Experimental investigations were conducted to analyse the performance of the heat exchangers, with a focus on the impact of tube- and shell-side flow rates, as well as shell inlet temperature, on effectiveness. Throughout the experiments, the tube inlet water temperature was kept at 20 °C, whereas the shell inlet temperature was set to 50, 60 or 70 °C. The tube flow rate was set to 1, 2 or 3 L/min, while the shell flow rate was set to 2, 3 or 4 L/min. A total of 27 tests were performed with these combinations. The results show that effectiveness increases significantly with an increase in the shell side flow rate and hot inlet water temperature, whereas an increase in the tube side flow rate reduces effectiveness. The highest effectiveness value (ε = 0.603) was obtained at a shell side flow rate of 4 L/min, a tube side flow rate of 1 L/min and a shell side inlet temperature of 70 °C. The maximum heat transfer was measured as 3290 W at an inlet temperature of 70 °C and a flow rate of 4 L/min on the shell side and 3 L/min on the tube side. The experimental data obtained provide a reliable basis for validating numerical models and designing highly efficient, compact heat exchangers.