Laminarization of turbulent flow in a heated vertical finned tube

Abstract

Abstract Laminarization of the turbulent flow of Helium in a heated vertical finned tube was studied using a low-Reynolds number turbulence model. The study was carried out for an inlet Reynolds number of 6000, a non-dimensional wall heat flux value of 0.003, the number of fins ranging from 8 to 24, and non-dimensional fin height ranging from 0.1 to 0.3. Reductions in turbulent kinetic energy production and low-velocity regions in the inter-fin region are observed which promoted laminarization. Also, for low Reynolds number turbulent flow with large heat fluxes, the finned tubes are found to offer comparatively lower heat transfer enhancement at the expense of a larger pressure drop penalty.