Forced convective rate and pressure drop through a packed annulus: a numerical simulation

Abstract

Porous materials are used in engineering and industry due to their heat transmission qualities. This study examined forced convection flow through an annular tube packed with sphere balls of various materials and sizes using numerical analysis. The sphere balls were permeable. Ceramic, plastic, and steel with spherical diameters of 3, 5, and 6 and porosity of 0.4 were tested for heat dissipated and fluid flow. Also, test the impact of steel balls of diameter 6mm with 0.6 and 0.8 porosity. The numerical simulation results are used to analyze the forced convection and fluid flow parameters of a three-dimensional annular tube with continuous heat flux in the Reynold number range (5000-14000). Steel balls had an 80% higher heat transfer coefficient than annular tubes without porous mediums. The simulation showed that inserting the porous media increased annular tube pressure loss. The maximum heat transfer coefficient improved by about 80% when the spherical diameter is 3 mm. Also, the result illustrated the heat transfer coefficient of steel balls Increased by about 79%, 69%, and 49%, with 0.4, 0.6, and 0.8 respectively