Conventional heat transfer enhancement methods have focused on the surface characteristics of the heat-exchanger. The enhancement of heat transfer through altering the characteristics of the working fluid has become a new subject of interest. Micro-encapsulated phase change material (MEPCM) slurries show improved heat transfer abilities compared to single phase heat transfer fluids such as water due to their higher specific heat values in their phase change temperature range. The present work is a numerical and experimental study towards fundamental understanding of the impact of using PCM on thermal and fluid flow characteristics of different single-phase and two-phase heat transfer applications. The mathematical formulation to represent the presence of single and multi-component MEPCM is developed and incorporated into the numerical model for single-phase and two-phase fluid flow systems. In particular, the use of PCM in its encapsulated form for heat transfer enhancement of liquid flow in the presence of evaporation is explored. In addition, an experimental study is conducted to validate the numerical model in a setting of natural convection flow. Finally, the application of PCM in its layered form on the effectiveness of drying of moist porous materials (e.g. paper) is investigated.

This work aims to develop a theoretical power operations envelope for the PUR-1 reactor. Given the bulk coolant temperature, the reactor’s power level is limited primarily by the Onset of Nucleate Boiling. Additional limitations to the reactor power are explored including the dose rate at the top of the pool due to shine and the airborne effluent of argon and nitrogen. Operations in excess of the facility cooling capacity will be proposed and are already permitted at other US research reactor facilities, provided temperature limitations are met. The MCNP and NATCON code packages have been implemented to assist in power limitation measurement. A brief discussion on the licensing considerations is included to provide some framework for pursuit of these higher power levels. The maximum power consideration ensures continued full use of the facility while maximizing its effectiveness in the teaching laboratories and access to researchers. The final power level is limited by the administrative dose limit at the top of the reactor pool as well as the Onset of Nucleate Boiling power level as a function of bulk pool temperature. The result is an operational envelope which would allow operators to have the maximum neutron flux without changing the facility or creating phase transition within the light water coolant.

Magnetic fluid flow by thermomagnetic convection with and without buoyancy was studied in experiments and computational simulations. A mineral oil based ferro magnetic fluid was subjected to varying magnetic fields to induce thermomagnetic convection. As such fluids are mainly developed to increase heat transfer for cooling the fundamental effects on magnetic fluid flow was investigated using various magnetic field distributions. Computational simulations of natural and thermomagnetic convection are based on a Finite-Element technique and considered a constant magnetic field gradient, a realistic magnetic field generated by a permanent magnet and alternating magnetic fields. The magnetic field within the fluid domain was calculated by the magneto-static Maxwell equations and considered in an additional magnetic body force known as the Kelvin body force by numerical simulations. The computational model coupled the solutions of the magnetic field equations with the heat and fluid flow equations. Experiments to investigate thermomagnetic convection in the presence of terrestrial gravity used infrared thermography to record temperature fields that are validated by a corresponding numerical analysis. All configurations were chosen to investigate the response of the magnetic fluid to the applied body forces and their competition by varying the magnetic field intensity and its spatial distribution. As both body forces are temperature dependent, situations were analysed numerically and experimentally to give an indication of the degree by which heat transfer may be enhanced or reduced. Results demonstrate that the Kelvin body force can be much stronger than buoyancy and can induce convection where buoyancy is not able to. This was evident in a transition area if parts of a fluid domain are not fully magnetically saturated. Results for the transition from natural convection to thermomagnetic convection suggest that the domain of influence of the Kelvin body force is aligned with the dominance of the respective body force. To characterise the transition a body force ratio of the Kelvin body force to buoyancy was developed that identified the respective driving forces of the convection cells. The effects on heat transfer was quantified by the Nusselt number and a suitable Rayleigh number. A modified Rayleigh number was used when both body forces were active to define an effective body force by taking the relative orientation of both forces into account. Results for the alternating magnetic field presented flow fields that altered with the frequency of the applied magnetic field but with varying amplitude. This affected the heat transfer that alternated with the frequency but failed to respond instantaneously and a phase lag was observed which was characterised by three different time scales.

This dissertation focuses on the effects of superhydrophobic (SHPo) surfaces on thermal transport. The work is divided into two main categories: thermal transport without phase change and thermal transport with phase change. Thermal transport without phase change is the topic of four stand-alone chapters. Three address jet impingement at SHPo surfaces and the fourth considers natural convection at a vertical, SHPo wall. Thermal transport with phase change is the topic of a single stand-alone chapter exploring pool boiling at SHPo surfaces. Two chapters examining jet impingement present analytical models for thermal transport; one considered an isothermal wall and the other considered an isoflux wall. The chapter considering the isothermal scenario has been archivally published. Conclusions are presented for both models. The models indicated that the Nusselt number decreased dramatically as the temperature jump length increased. Further, the influence of radial position, jet Reynolds number, Prandtl number and isoflux versus isothermal heating become negligible as temperature jump length increased. The final chapter concerning jet impingement reports an experimental exploration of jet impingement at post patterned SHPo surfaces with varying microfeature pitch and cavity fraction. The empirical results show a decrease in Nusselt number relative to smooth hydrophobic surfaces for small pitch and cavity fraction and the isoflux model agrees well with this data when the ratio of temperature jump length to slip length is 3.1. At larger pitch and cavity fractions, the empirical results have higher Nusselt numbers than the SHPo surfaces with small pitch and cavity fraction but remain smaller than the smooth hydrophobic surface. We attribute this to the influence of small wetting regions. The chapter addressing natural convection presents an analytical model for buoyant flow at a vertical SHPo surface. The Nusselt number decreased dramatically as temperature jump length increased, with greater decrease occurring near the lower edge and at higher Rayleigh number. Thermal transport with phase change is the topic of the final stand-alone chapter concerning pool boiling, which has been archivally published. Surface heat flux as a function of surface superheat was reported for SHPo surfaces with rib and post patterning at varying microfeature pitch, cavity fraction, and microfeature height. Nucleate boiling is more suppressed on post patterned surfaces than rib patterned surfaces. At rib patterned surfaces, transition superheat decreases as cavity fraction increases. Increasing microfeature height modestly increases the transition superheat. Once stable film boiling is achieved, changes in surface microstructure negligibly influence thermal transport.

Cette thèse, à la fois numérique et expérimentale, porte sur l’étude du transfert de chaleur par convection naturelle qui apparait au sein d’une cavité hémisphérique en régime stationnaire. L’enceinte est remplie d’eau ou de nanofluide de type eau / ZnO. La fraction volumique varie entre 0 (eau pure) et 10%. La coupole de la cavité est maintenue à température froide. Ce travail s’applique au domaine de l’ingénierie électronique et plus particulièrement au refroidissement des composants actifs de différentes formes. Trois géométries de sources de chaleur sont étudiées : la première est plane et circulaire (disque) et les suivantes, centrées sur le disque, de même surface d’échange, sont cubique et hémisphérique. L’angle d’inclinaison du disque varie entre 0 (coupole orientée vers le haut) et 180° (coupole orientée vers le bas) par rapport au plan horizontal. Les sources de chaleur génèrent des puissances qui conduisent à des Rayleigh importants. L’approche numérique est effectuée à l’aide de la méthode des volumes finis basée sur l’algorithme SIMPLE et un modèle monophasique. Pour chaque source active, le transfert de chaleur convectif est analysé et quantifié par l’intermédiaire d’une corrélation du type Nusselt-Rayleigh-Prandtl-angle d’inclinaison. D’un point de vue expérimental, la fabrication des sources de chaleur est minutieusement décrite étape par étape et le calcul du coefficient de transfert convectif moyen expérimental est détaillé. La comparaison mesures-corrélations remet en question l’efficacité du nanofluide en termes de refroidissement. / This numerical and experimental thesis deals with natural convective heat transfer that occurs in a hemispherical cavity in steady state. The enclosure is filled with water or ZnO / water nanofluid. The volume fraction varies between 0% (pure water) and 10%. The coupola of the cavity is kept at a cold temperature. This work corresponds to the field of electronics and the cooling of different actives composants. Three active heating sources are studied: the first one is plane and circular (the disc) and the followings, centered on the disc with the same surface, are cubical and hemispherical. The tilted angle varies between 0 (dome facing upwards) and 180° (dome facing downwards) with respect to the horizontal plane. Heat sources generate important heat fluxes leading to high Rayleigh numbers values. Numerical approach is done by means of the volume control method based on the SIMPLE algorithm and using monophasic model. For each active source, the convective heat transfer is analyzed and quantified by means of a correlation of the Nusselt-Rayleig-Prandtl-tilt angle type. Experimentally, the heat sources are built step by step and the average convective heat transfer coefficient is calculated. The comparison measures-correlations questions on the cooling nanofluid’s efficiency.

Capital investment reduction, exergetic efficiency improvement and material compatibility issues have been identified as the primary techno-economic challenges associated, with the near-term development and deployment of thermal energy storage (TES) in commercial-scale concentrating solar power plants. Three TES techniques have gained attention in the solar energy research community as possible candidates to reduce the cost of solar-generated electricity, namely (1) sensible heat storage, (2) latent heat (tank filled with phase change materials (PCMs) or encapsulated PCMs packed in a vessel) and (3) thermochemical storage. Among these the PCM macro-encapsulation approach seems to be one of the most-promising methods because of its potential to develop more effective energy exchange, reduce the cost associated with the tank and increase the exergetic efficiency. However, the technological barriers to this approach arise from the encapsulation techniques used to create a durable capsule, as well as an assessment of the fundamental thermal energy transport mechanisms during the phase change. A comprehensive study of the energy exchange interactions and induced fluid flow during melting and solidification of a confined storage medium is reported in this investigation from a theoretical perspective. Emphasis has been placed on the thermal characterization of a single constituent storage module rather than an entire storage system, in order to, precisely capture the energy exchange contributions of all the fundamental heat transfer mechanisms during the phase change processes. Two-dimensional, axisymmetric, transient equations for mass, momentum and energy conservation have been solved numerically by the finite volume scheme. Initially, the interaction between conduction and natural convection energy transport modes, in the absence of thermal radiation, is investigated for solar power applications at temperatures (300 - 400°). Later, participating thermal radiation within the storage medium has been included in order to extend the conventional natural convection-dominated model and to analyze its influence on the melting and freezing dynamics at elevated temperatures (800 - 850°). A parametric analysis has been performed in order to ascertain the effects of the controlling parameters on the melting/freezing rates and the total and radiative heat transfer rates at the inner surface of the shell. The results show that the presence of thermal radiation enhances the melting and solidification processes. Finally, a simplified model of the packed bed heat exchanger with multiple spherical capsules filled with the storage medium and positioned in a vertical array inside a cylindrical container is analyzed and numerically solved. The influence of the inlet mass flow rate, inner shell surface emissivity and PCM attenuation coefficient on the melting dynamics of the PCM has been analyzed and quantified.

NUMERICAL AND EXPERIMENTAL STUDY OF TRANSIENT LAMINAR NATURAL CONVECTION OF HIGH PRANDTL NUMBER FLUIDS IN A CUBICAL CAVITYObai Younis Taha ElaminLa convección natural en espacios cerrados, se encuentra ampliamente en sistemas naturales e industriales. El objetivo general de este trabajo es desarrollar y validar una herramienta de simulación capaz de predecir las tasas de enfriamiento de aceite en un tanque. Esta herramienta ha de tener en cuenta la variación de la viscosidad del aceite para dar información detallada de las tasas de enfriamiento del aceite bajo diferentes condiciones de contorno térmicas realisticas. En primer lugar, la influencia de diferentes condiciones de contorno térmicas en las paredes, la variación de la viscosidad y la conductividad de la pared en la convección natural del flujo laminar transitorio en una cavidad cúbica con seis paredes térmicamente activo están analizadas.Para analizar el efecto individual de las paredes laterales de la cavidad en el proceso de enfriamiento, la segunda parte de este estudio considera que, tanto numéricamente como experimentalmente, la transición de la convección natural laminar en una cavidad cúbica con dos paredes opuestas frías y verticales.Nuevas relaciones de escala que tengan en cuenta la variación de la viscosidad con la temperatura, no publicadas anteriormente en la literatura, se derivan de las velocidades de la capa límite, por el tiempo necesario para la capa límite para alcanzar el estado estacionario y para la velocidad y el espesor de las intrusiones horizontales.NUMERICAL AND EXPERIMENTAL STUDY OF TRANSIENT LAMINAR NATURAL CONVECTION OF HIGH PRANDTL NUMBER FLUIDS IN A CUBICAL CAVITYObai Younis Taha ElaminFree convection in enclosed spaces is found widely in natural and industrial systems. The general objective of this work is to develop and validate a simulation tool able to predict the cooling rates of oil in a tank. This tool has to take into account the variation of the oil viscosity to give detailed information of the cooling rates of the oil under different realistic thermal boundary conditions. First, the influence of different thermal wall boundary conditions, the variation of the viscosity and the wall conductivity on the transient laminar natural convection flow in a cubical cavity with the six walls thermally active is studied numerically. To analyze the individual effect of the side walls of the cavity on the cooling process, the second part of this study considers, numerically and experimentally, the transient laminar natural convection in a cubical cavity with two cold opposite vertical walls. The shadowgraph technique is employed to visualize the development of the transient convective flow. New scaling relations that take into account the viscosity variation with temperature, not reported previously in the literature, are derived for the boundary layer velocities, for the time needed for the boundary layer to reach the steady state and for the velocity and thickness of the horizontal intrusions.

Performance of a refrigerator can be characterized with its ability to maintain a preset low temperature by spending the least amount of electricity. It is important to understand natural convection inside a refrigerator for optimizing its design for performance. Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) together with experiments is a very powerful tool for visualizing flow and temperature fields that are essential for understanding a phenomenon that involves both fluid and heat flow. In this aspect, simulations are performed for compartment and total refrigerator models using the package program Fluent which is based on finite volume method. An experimental study is performed to determine the constant wall temperature boundary conditions for the numerical models. Effect of radiation is also investigated by comparing the numerical study of a different full refrigerator model with a similar one in literature. While evaluating the radiation effect, convection boundary condition is selected by defining overall heat transfer coefficient between the ambient room air at a constant temperature and the inner surfaces of the walls. Based on assumptions, related heat transfer analyses are done using compartment and total refrigerator model analyses. Performing CFD simulations of a refrigerator cabinet for visualizing the flow and temperature fields which is the aim of the study is achieved and some observations that can be useful in design optimization are made.

The steady-state natural convection from vertically placed rectangular fins is investigated numerically by means of a commercial CFD program called ICEPAK. The effects of geometric parameters of fin arrays on the performance of heat dissipation from fin arrays are examined. In order to simulate the different fin configurations and compare the results with literature, two experimental studies from literature are selected. Optimum fin spacing for both studies are found numerically and compared with experimental studies. The models are first verified by simulating natural convection on vertically placed flat plate and comparing the results with literature. After verification 30 different fin array configurations for the first experimental case study and 15 different fin array configurations for the second experimental case study from literature are analyzed. It is observed that the present results agree very well with the optimum fin spacing results of the experimental studies. It is also observed that the empirical correlations in the literature are conservative and the numerically obtained correlations predict higher heat transfer rates.

In this thesis, the two-dimensional, transient, laminar flow of viscous and incompressible fluids is solved by using the dual reciprocity boundary element method (DRBEM). Natural convection and mixed convection flows are also solved with the addition of energy equation. Solutions of natural convection flow of nanofluids and micropolar fluids in enclosures are obtained for highly large values of Rayleigh number. The fundamental solution of Laplace equation is used for obtaining boundary element method (BEM) matrices whereas all the other terms in the differential equations governing the flows are considered as nonhomogeneity. This is the main advantage of DRBEM to tackle the nonlinearities in the equations with considerably small computational cost. All the convective terms are evaluated by using the DRBEM coordinate matrix which is already computed in the formulation of nonlinear terms. The resulting systems of initial value problems with respect to time are solved with forward and central differences using relaxation parameters, and the fourth-order Runge-Kutta method. The numerical stability analysis is developed for the flow problems considered with respect to the choice of the time step, relaxation parameters and problem constants. The stability analysis is made through an eigenvalue decomposition of the final coefficient matrix in the DRBEM discretized system. It is found that the implicit central difference time integration scheme with relaxation parameter value close to one, and quite large time steps gives numerically stable solutions for all flow problems solved in the thesis. One-and-two-sided lid-driven cavity flow, natural and mixed convection flows in cavities, natural convection flow of nanofluids and micropolar fluids in enclosures are solved with several geometric configurations. The solutions are visualized in terms of streamlines, vorticity, microrotation, pressure contours, isotherms and flow vectors to simulate the flow behaviour.