Influence of fin thickness on heat transfer and flow performance of a parallel flow evaporator

Abstract

This paper studies numerically the influence of the louver?s fin thickness on heat transfer and flow performance of a parallel flow evaporator, a comprehensive evaluation and analysis of the five structures at different Reynolds numbers are systematically carried out. Comparison of the numerical results with the experimental data shows good agreement with maximal errors of 12.16% and 5.29% for the heat transfer factor and the resistance factor, respectively. The results show that the heat transfer coefficient and the pressure drop increase with the increase of the thickness of the louver fins when the Reynolds number is a constant. The analysis of the comprehensive evaluation factor shows that the A-type fin is the best, and it can effectively strengthen the heat exchange on the air side and improve the heat transfer capacity of the system. The research results can provide reference for the structural optimization of the louver fins.