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A master's thesis from Aalborg University
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Assessment of the natural convection heat transfer phenomenon on a vertical wall, when waves are added along the wall

Author

Term

4. term

Publication year

2020

Submitted on

Pages

49

Abstract

This thesis examines whether adding waves (corrugations) to a vertical wall is an effective way to enhance heat transfer by natural convection, where warmer fluid rises and cooler fluid sinks. The study uses computer simulations (CFD) performed in OpenFOAM. Heat transfer along the wall is assessed using the Nusselt number, a dimensionless indicator of how much convection improves heat transfer compared with pure conduction. Tracking the Nusselt number along the wall allows both local variations and the overall effect to be quantified. Two investigations are carried out: (1) varying the wave amplitude, and (2) varying the number of waves while keeping the amplitude fixed. The results show that local improvements can occur in certain regions of the wall, with more noticeable changes when the amplitude is altered. However, when considering the overall heat transfer along the entire wall, the smooth flat vertical wall performs best among the geometries studied.

Dette projekt undersøger, om bølger (korrugeringer) på en lodret væg er en effektiv måde at øge varmeoverførsel ved naturlig konvektion, hvor varm væske eller luft stiger og kold synker. Undersøgelsen bygger på computersimuleringer (CFD) udført i OpenFOAM. Varmeoverførslen langs væggen vurderes via Nusselt-tallet, et dimensionsløst mål for, hvor meget konvektion forbedrer varmeoverførsel i forhold til ren varmeledning. Ved at følge Nusselt-tallet langs væggen kan både lokale variationer og den samlede effekt kvantificeres. To studier gennemføres: (1) amplituden af bølgerne varieres, og (2) antallet af bølger varieres, mens amplituden holdes konstant. Resultaterne viser, at der kan opnås lokal forbedring i visse områder af væggen, især når amplituden ændres. Ser man derimod på den samlede varmeoverførsel over hele væggen, klarer den plane lodrette væg sig bedst blandt de undersøgte geometrier.

[This apstract has been rewritten with the help of AI based on the project's original abstract]