Construction of a hydraulic model of a heat exchanger

The work presents the construction of a hydraulic model of a heat exchanger (HE). The multi-section HE studied in this work includes a heat exchange matrix of 11 sections, each of which contains 6 small-diameter channels. The construction of a hydraulic mathematical model (HMM) is based on the results of experimental studies and the results of mathematical modeling. Numerical simulations were carried out in the OpenFOAM package using the simpleFoam solver. Based on mathematical modeling, full-size calculations of the TA were carried out in the operating range of Reynolds numbers, as well as additional calculations of flow in small-sized channels taking into account internal fins and the presence of heat transfer intensifiers. As a result of analyzing the distribution of hydraulic losses in a multi-section HE, a hydraulic mathematical model of the device’s operation was constructed. Based on a comparison of calculated data and the results of experimental studies, the parameters of the HMM heat exchanger were identified. The constructed model will be further generalized to a wide range of HE sizes of this type.