CENG 176B, Spring 2016Drews, Zhang, Yang, Xu, and Vazquez-Mena

Section B01 (W/F), Team 07: Double-O Seven

Nusselt Correlation Analysis of Single PhaseSteady-State Flow through a Chevron Type

Plate Heat Exchanger

Part I: Thomas ArnoldPart II: Kimberly NguyenPart III: John FukuyamaPart IV: Renee Parker

AbstractChevron type plate heat exchangers are widely used in a variety of industries due to their large

surface area and corrugations that improve flow characteristics for heat transfer . We perform Nus-selt correlation analysis to parametrize the single phase hydrodynamic conditions to improve heattransfer within these heat exchangers. We determine a unique Nusselt correlation for the turbulentregime of Reynolds numbers (2000 <Re <7500), Prandtl number from 3 <Pr <5, and chevronangle of 60 degrees. Several novel trends are observed including linear increase in overall heattransfer with increasing water flow rate and increasing dominance of convective heat transfer withincreasing reynolds number. The proposed Nusselt correlation closely aligns with correlations inliterature over the same chevron angle and Reynold’s number range. The results confirm supe-rior heat transfer in corrugated plates over flat plates, however further investigation is required todetermine optimal corrugation spacing and angle for greater heat transfer coefficients.

1 Introduction

Heat exchangers are an essential part of nearly every chemical processing industry large and small,

from oil and gas refineries to local dairy producers.1 A heat exchanger is employed to re-use excess

heat from hot effluent fluids to heat other streams in a given process a practice which began in

the early 1920s with the advent of steam jet ejectors and vacuum condensers and evolved rapidly

in the 1980s with the boom of vacuum engineering technology that revolutionized petrochemical

processing.2

Today, there are two broad categories of heat exchangers: shell and tube exchangers, and plate

exchangers. Shell and tube exchangers find the most use in the oil and gas industry, as they are low

cost, and suited for high pressure applications, with tube leaks easily identifiable.3 Alternatively,

plate heat exchangers present higher efficiencies, easier cleaning and maintenance, and better ca-

pability for increased capacity, making them more viable for food processing and pharmaceutical

applications.4

Due to their easy disassembly and high efficiency, Plate Heat Exchangers (PHEs) are of greatest

interest to examine with experimental models. There are four common arrangements of plate

heat exchangers: plate and frame, plate fin, lamella, and spiral, each with different heat transfer

characteristics which are of most importance in any process. Plate and frame often presents the

highest efficiency, with heat transfer coefficients, U , in the range of 1000 <U <4000 W/m2K.

Spiral and lamella follow closely in the range 700 <U <2500 W/m2K.5

For a single exchanger, the values for heat transfer coefficient depend on the stream temperature

gradient and the flow rate of fluid in each hot and cold channel. When optimizing heat transfer, it

becomes important to parametrize how convective and conductive heat transfer interplay with flow

characteristics, often referred to as the Nusselt correlation.

1Nikhil, J.; Shailendra, L. M. Heat Transfer Analysis of Corrugated Plate Heat Exchanger of Different PlateGeometry: A Review. International Journal of Emerging Technology and Advanced Engineering 2012, 2.

2Athey, R. Graham Corporation: Evolution of a Heat Transfer Company. Heat Transfer Engineering 1999, 20.3Singh, A.; Sehgal, S. Thermohydraulic Analysis of Shell-and-Tube Heat Exchanger with Segmental Baffles. ISRN

Chemical Engineering 2013, 2013.4APV-Corporation In APV Heat Transfer Handbook: A History of Excellence; SPX: Getzville, 2008.5Ibid.

1

2 Background

Of the four common arrangements of PHEs, plate and frame exchangers typically have the highest

heat transfer efficiencies.6 While smaller plate and frame exchangers are generally joined through

brazing, larger commercial plate and frame exchangers employ gaskets to confine flow.7 These are

known as gasketed plate heat exchangers (G. PHEs).

G. PHEs engage several corrugated metal plates with multiple portholes and elastomeric gas-

kets to confine fluid flow through the channels, optimizing heat transfer.8 The corrugated design of

G. PHEs provides for high turbulence and shear stress, enhancing mixing and heat transfer.9

G.PHEs may be operated with co-current flow, cross-flow, or counter-current flow. Flow

schematics of co-current, top, and counter-current, bottom, G. PHEs are depicted in Fig. 5. Counter

current flow generally is preferred, as it allows for maximum heat transfer.10

A commercial G. PHE with water as its hot and cold fluid streams was used in this study. The

overall heat transfer coefficient was experimentally determined and evaluated alongside respective

hot and cold stream flow rates.

Additionally, a brief analysis of the correlation between the Nusselt, Prandtl, and Reynolds

number was conducted. The Nusselt number characterizes the intensity of the convective heat

exchange between surface of an object and the flow of a fluid.11 The Prandtl number is an exclusive

characteristic of fluids, and determines whether the momentum diffusivity or thermal diffusivity

of a liquid dominates.12 Gases generally possess low Prandtl numbers, while oils possess high

Prandtl numbers.13 The Reynolds number is a ratio of inertial force and viscous force, with a high

Reynolds number indicating turbulent flow.14

6Heat Exchangers Information., IEEE Global Spec, 2011.7Advantages of Gasketed/Brazed Plate heat Exchangers., Graham Corporation, 2016.8R. Shilling, e. a. In Chemical Engineers’ Handbook, Perry, R., Chilton, C., Eds., 8th ed.; McGraw Hill: New

York, 2008, Ch. 11.9Heat Exchangers., Encyclopedia of Chemical Engineering Equipment, University of Michigan, 2014.

10Hewitt, G. F., Barbosa, J. R., Eds. Heat Exchangers., Thermopedia.11Condon, E., Heat transfer. In Handbook of Physics, Condon, E., Odishaw, H., Eds., 7th ed.; McGraw-Hill: 1967,

5.5.7–5.8.12Hewitt and Barbosa, Heat Exchangers.13Weisstein, E., Ed. Prandtl Number., Wolfram Research, 1996.14GRC Database Reynolds Number., NASA Glenn Research Center, 2016.

2

3 Theory

3.1 Overall Heat Transfer Coefficient

The heat equation relates the amount of heat transferred at any given time, dq, to the overall heat

transfer coefficient, U , the difference between the temperature of the hot stream, Th, that of the

cold stream, Tc, and the differential area available for heat transfer, dA, by the following equation,

dq =U(Th −Tc)dA. (1)

The temperature difference between hot and cold streams may be defined as ∆T1 = Thout −Tcin and

∆T2 = Thin − Tcout , where Thin is the temperature of hot stream entering the heat exchanger, Thout

is the temperature of hot stream exiting the heat exchanger, Tcin is the temperature of hot stream

entering the heat exchanger, and Tcout is the temperature of cold stream exiting the heat exchanger.

Under steady state, counter-current flow operation, ∆T1 and ∆T2 may be approximated as linear.

Through integration, the total amount of heat transferred, qT , is given by

qT =UA∆Tlmtd =UA∆T1 −∆T2

ln(∆T1∆T2

), (2)

where ∆Tlmtd is the log-mean temperature difference.

If the overall heat transfer coefficient is unknown, qT may be alternatively defined as,

qT = ωhCph(Thout −Thin) = ωcCpc(Tcout −Tcin). (3)

where ωh is the mass flow rate of the hot stream, ωc is the mass flow rate of the cold stream, Cph

is the specific heat of hot fluid at Thavg =(Thin+Thout )

2 , and Cpc is the specific heat of cold fluid at

Tcavg =(Tcout+Tcin)

2 .

The overall heat coefficient, U , may be determined from equating equations 2 and 3.

3

3.2 Correlation Between Nusselt, Prandtl, and Reynolds numbers

The Nusselt numbers, Nuh and Nuc, for hot and cold streams respectively are defined as

Nuh =hhDh

kh(4)

and

Nuc =hcDh

kc, (5)

where hh and hc are the convective heat transfer coefficients of hot and cold streams, kh and kc are

the thermal conductivity coefficients of hot and cold streams, and Dh is the hydraulic diameter. For

a plate heat exchanger, Dh is determined by,

Dh =4α

Φ, (6)

where α is the amplitude of plate corrugation and Φ is the surface enlargement factor. Heat ex-

changer plates have an approximate sinusoidal profile,15 resulting in an area increase factor of

Φ =16(1+

√1+(

2πα

Pc)2 +4

√1+

(2πα

Pc)2

2), (7)

where Pc is the plate corrugation pitch, as shown in Fig. 6 of the Appendix.

The Prandtl numbers, Prh and Prc, for hot and cold streams respectively are defined as

Prh =µhCph

kh(8)

and

Prc =µcCpc

kc, (9)

where µh and µc are the dynamic viscosities of the hot and cold streams.

15Plate Heat Exchanger., ACHP Component Models, 2011.

4

The Reynold numbers, Reh and Rec, for hot and cold streams respectively are defined as

Reh =vhρhDh

µh(10)

and

Rec =vcρcDh

µc(11)

where ρh and ρc are the densities of the hot and cold streams and vh and vc are the maximum

velocities of the hot and cold streams.

The correlation between Nu, Pr, and Re may be generally defined as,

Nuh = ahRehbhPrh

ch, (12)

and

Nuc = acRecbcPrc

cc , (13)

where ah, ac, bh, bc, ch, and cc are experimentally determined coefficients.16

Since Re and Pr values are constant a given flow rate and temperature, empirical Re and Pr

values may be used alongside a, b, and c coefficients from literature to provide a plot for calculated

Nu values (Table 1).17 ,18 ,19 ,20 ,21 To determine the coefficients with the best fit, the plot of

calculated Nu values may then be juxtaposed with a plot of empirically determined Nu values for

comparison.

16McCabe, W. et al. In Unit Operations of Chemical Engineering, 7th ed.; McGraw Hill: Boston, 2004, Ch. 15.17Sparrow, E.; Hossfeld, L. Effect of rounding of protruding edges on heat transfer and pressure drop in a duct. Int

J. Heat Mass Transfer 1984, 27.18Okada, B. et al. Design and Heat Transfer Characteristics of a New Plate Heat Exchanger. Heat Transfer Japanese

Research 1972, 1.19Talik, A. et al. In Heat Transfer and Pressure Drop Characteristics of a Plate Heat Exchanger; ASME: New York

(1995).20Focke, W.; Oliver, I. The Effect of the Corrugation Inclination Angle on the Thermohydraulic Performance of

Plate Heat Exchangers. Int J. Heat Mass Transfer 1985, 28.21Thonon, B. et al. Recent Research and Developments in Plate Heat Exchangers. Journal of Enhanced Heat Trans-

fer 1995, 2.

5

Author Correlation Chevron Angle ReSparrow Nu = 0.491Pr0.3Re0.632 60 2000 < Re < 30000Okada Nu = 0.317Pr0.4Re0.65 60 700 < Re < 20000Talik Nu = 0.248Pr0.4Re0.7 60 1450 < Re < 11460Focke Nu = 0.440Pr0.5Re0.64 60 45 < Re < 300Thonon Nu = 0.227Pr0.333Re0.631 60 50 < Re < 15000

Table 1: Nusselt number correlations: comparisons in literature

4 Methods

4.1 Experimental Setup

The experimental apparatus was set up in accordance with Fig. 1. The PHE consisted of 6 channels

(3 hot, 3 cold) between corrugated plates in counter-current orientation. The flow in each channel

was directed by symmetric gaskets, which caused flow to travel diagonally across corrugations and

is depicted in Fig. 1 with flow inlets diagonally across from their corresponding outlet. Specifica-

tions for individual plate geometry are given in Table 2. Flow from each of the 65 gallon capacity

water tanks was controlled by Blue-White Industries F-450 polysulfone molded flowmeters and

pumped by 0.5 horsepower Dayton 6K580A pumps. Hot water was heated by Bradford White 50

gallon water heater, and allowed to heat for at least 30 minutes before beginning experimentation.

All piping elbow connections were Teflon wrapped and all PVC piping was insulated with 0.5

in K-Flex insulation. When the system began flowing, temperature of each stream was recorded

by Pt-100 resistance temperature detectors (RTDs) and output to a custom Labview VI, which

recorded time and temperature data.

Figure 1: Basic process flow diagram of experimental apparatus

6

Table 2: Geometric characteristics of chevron plate

Parameter Symbol Value Parameter Symbol Value

Plate Width Lw 10.8 cm Plate Length Lp 32.9 cmChannel Spacing Dg 5.3 mm Plate Area A 323 cm2

Chevron Angle β 60 ◦ Corrugation Pitch Pc 92.7 mm

4.2 Procedure

The water heater was switched on to begin hot water generation at least 30 minutes before trials

were run. During heating, cold water valves were configured to facilitate flow from the higher

volume cold tank (generally tank 1), through the PHE, and out to the lower volume cold tank. After

sufficient hot water has been generated, hot and cold water pumps were switched on individually

to adjust the flow meters to the proper flow rate, always matching equal hot and cold flow rates.

Pumps were switched off after each flow rate was adjusted to prevent unnecessary and unrecorded

heat transfer. Once configured, the hot and cold pumps, as well as the data recording software,

were started simultaneously. The system took an average of 1 minute to reach steady state, at

which point pumps were shut off and recording concluded. Experiments were conducted with the

following flow rates, which were kept equal between hot and cold sides for each trial: 1.5, 2, 2.5,

3, 4, and 5.5 gallons per second.

5 Results and Discussion

A few types of measurements were made in order to determine relevant heat transfer data - inlet

and outlet temperatures of the water leaving and entering the heat exchanger, the flow rates of the

cold and hot streams, and the hydraulic diameter of the plates, given by Eq. (6). The overall heat

transfer coefficient, U was determined by first calculating qT using Eq. (3) and then equating qT

to Eq. (2) to find U . By determining U at different flow rates, it was demonstrated that the heat

transfer coefficient increases with increasing flow rate, ω , as seen in Fig. 2.

7

Figure 2: Hot and cold heat transfer coefficients increase with flowrate

The Prandtl number was shown to be between 3 and 5, indicating that momentum diffusivity

was slightly more dominant than thermal diffusivity in terms of the energy transferred by water.

The Reynolds number, which was shown to be between 2000 and 7500, indicates turbulent

conditions in the heat exchanger.22 These conditions are desirable for convective heat transfer

since more turbulence allows for heat to be distributed more readily through convection. This is

why the plates used to exchange heat are often corrugated since corrugation helps induce turbulent

flow and thus higher rates of heat transfer.

Using Eq. (4), the Nusselt number was shown to be between 70 and 170, indicating that heat

transfer through convection was more dominant than through conduction of heat through the plates

and water. It was also observed that for increasing Reynolds number, Nusselt number also in-

creased as seen in Fig. 3. This is to be expected due to the fact that greater bulk motion of fluid

22Gradeck, M. et al. Local analysis of heat transfer inside corrugated channel. Int J. Heat Mass Transfer 2005, 48.

8

will give rise to higher Reynolds numbers and convective flow will dominate in the numerator of

the Nusselt number. Our data shows a similar trend to others seen in literature, and most closely

with that of Thonon,23 as seen in Fig. 3.

There are a couple of considerations to take into account when designing a plate heat exchanger

that will most effectively cool a fluid. The most important are those that will increase convection

and result in higher Reynolds numbers. Higher flow rates as well as chevron corrugations all serve

to induce turbulent flow in the fluid, and thus transfer heat more readily. Plate heat exchangers are

of particular interest due to their ability to move fluid over a large surface area in a relatively small

volume of space. All of these features are present in the heat exchanger under consideration and

its similarity to industry standards is seen in Fig. 3.

Figure 3: Comparison of Nusselt number for similar heat exchang-ers. Experimental data most closely matches Thonon.

23Thonon et al., “Recent Research and Developments in Plate Heat Exchangers”.

9

6 Conclusions

We determine by varying flow rates and recording each inlet and outlet temperature that overall

heat transfer coefficients increase linearly with mass flow rate of water. Using mean temperatures

of each hot and cold stream to tabulate material properties of water, coupled with the flow rate and

hydraulic diameter of the plate, we solve for the Prandtl, Reynolds, and Nusselt numbers for each

trial of continuous, equal hot and cold flow. The Nusselt correlation is concluded to be consistent

with literature and most similar to results published by Thonon, et. al,24 with deviations most likely

arising due to differences in surface enlargement factor and the limited range of Reynolds numbers

tested in this experiment. Nevertheless, the agreement of the reported Nusselt correlation with

literature provides confidence that our simplified model is an accurate representation of industry

equipment.

To improve this work, we recommend that alternative chevron angles and surface enlargement

factors be tested, via the use of different plates. Such an analysis would provide greater comparison

to literature for the nusselt correlation and allow analysis for the effects of these parameters on

overall heat transfer coefficient.

24Thonon et al., “Recent Research and Developments in Plate Heat Exchangers”.

10

7 Appendix

Figure 4: A Gasketed plate heat exchanger.25

11

Figure 5: Co-current and counter-current flow configurations in aplate heat exchanger.26

Figure 6: Plate geometry and nomenclature for a corrugated plate.27

12