The Application of the Galerkin Method to the Solution of the Symmetric and Balanced Counterflow Regenerator Problem

Abstract

The Galerkin method is applied to solve the symmetric and balanced counterflow thermal regenerator problem. In this approach, the integral equation, expressing the reversal condition in periodic equilibrium of regenerator matrix, is transformed into a set of algebraic equations for the determination of the expansion coefficients associated with the representation of the matrix temperature distribution at the start of cold period in a power series in the space variable. The method is easy and straightforward to apply and leads to the explict analytical expressions for expansion coefficients. As explicit analytical formula for regenerator effectiveness is derived and the corresponding numerical values are computed. An excellent agreement is found between the present results and those reported in the literature by different numerical methods. The convergence towards the exact results by carrying out the computations to higher order terms, as well as the extension of this method to the more general counterflow regenerator problem is discussed.