Xuenong Gao

Preparation of nanoencapsulated phase change material as latent functionally thermal fluid

Nanoencapsulated phase change material with polystyrene as the shell and n-octadecane as the core was synthesized using the ultrasonic technique and miniemulsion in situ polymerization. The influences of polymerization factors, including initiator, chain transfer agent (CTA), surfactant, n-octadecane/styrene ratio and hydrophilic co-monomer, on the morphology and thermophysical properties of nanocapsules were systematically investigated. The optimized polymerization conditions were 0.5 wt% of initiator (2,2-azobisisobutyronitrile), 0.4 wt% of CTA (n-dodecyl mercaptan), 2% of composite surfactants which were composed of sodium dodecyl sulfate and poly-(ethylene glycol) monooctylphenyl ether by 1 : 1 in weight ratio, 1 wt% of hydrophilic co-monomer butyl acrylate or 3 wt% of methyl methacrylate and 1 : 1 n-octadecane to styrene in weight ratio. Under these conditions, the z-average size of prepared nanocapsules was 124 nm and the phase change enthalpy was 124.4 kJ kg −1 . The heat capacity was as high as 11.61 kJ kg −1 K −1 at the latex concentration of 20.6 wt%. Thermal stability and viscosity testing show that this fluid had excellent resistance to thermal shock (after 100 cycles, no liquid Oct was observed during heating) and low viscosity (only 3.61 mPa s at the latex concentration of 20.6 wt%), which seems to be promising as a latent functionally thermal fluid.

Preparation, Mechanical and Thermal Properties of Cement Board with Expanded Perlite Based Composite Phase Change Material for Improving Buildings Thermal Behavior

Here we demonstrate the mechanical properties, thermal conductivity, and thermal energy storage performance of construction elements made of cement and form-stable PCM-Rubitherm® RT 28 HC (RT28)/expanded perlite (EP) composite phase change materials (PCMs). The composite PCMs were prepared by adsorbing RT28 into the pores of EP, in which the mass fraction of RT28 should be limited to be no more than 40 wt %. The adsorbed RT28 is observed to be uniformly confined into the pores of EP. The phase change temperatures of the RT28/EP composite PCMs are very close to that of the pure RT28. The apparent density and compression strength of the composite cubes increase linearly with the mass fraction of RT28. Compared with the thermal conductivity of the boards composed of cement and EP, the thermal conductivities of the composite boards containing RT28 increase by 15%–35% with the mass fraction increasing of RT28. The cubic test rooms that consist of six boards were built to evaluate the thermal energy storage performance, it is found that the maximum temperature different between the outside surface of the top board with the indoor temperature using the composite boards is 13.3 °C higher than that of the boards containing no RT28. The thermal mass increase of the built environment due to the application of composite boards can contribute to improving the indoor thermal comfort and reducing the energy consumption in the buildings.

Experimental investigation on condensation heat transfer of R134a on single horizontal copper and stainless steel three-dimensional finned tubes

Condensation heat transfer characteristics of R134a on the horizontal copper and stainless steel three-dimensional (3D) finned tubes are experimentally investigated. The objective is to obtain the basic data for film condensation of R134a on low and high thermal conductivity 3D enhanced tubes. Experiments were carried out at saturation temperatures of 39 °C and wall subcoolings from 3.2 to 10.5 °C. The results show that the condensation heat transfer coefficients on the smooth copper and stainless steel tubes are smaller than those predicted by the Nusselt analysis by 4.4% and 4.8%, respectively. The average enhancement factors provided by the copper and stainless steel 3D finned tubes are 7.86 and 3.34, respectively. The copper 3D finned tube has higher enhancement factor than that of the stainless steel 3D finned tube, due to its high fin and thermal conductivity.

Effects of electric field on micro-scale flame properties of biobutanol fuel.

With the increasing need of smaller power sources for satellites, energy systems and engine equipment, microcombustion pose a potential as alternative power source to conventional batteries. As the substitute fuel source for gasoline, biobutanol shows more promising characteristics than ethanol. In this study, the diffusion microflame of liquid biobutanol under electric field have been examined through in-lab experiment and numerical simulation. It is found that traditional gas jet diffusion flame theory shows significant inconsistency with the experimental results of micro scale flame in electric field. The results suggest that with the increase of electric field intensity, the quenching flow rate decrease first and increase after it reach its minimum, while the flame height and highest flame temperature increase first and drop after its peak value. In addition, it was also observed that the flame height and highest temperature for smaller tube can reach its maximum faster. Therefore, the interaction between microscale effect and electric field plays a significant role on understanding the microcombustion of liquid fuel. Therefore, FLUENT simulation was adopted to understand and measure the impacts of microflame characteristic parameters. The final numerical results are consistent with the experimental data and show a high reliability.

Heat Transfer of Boiling R134a and R142b on a Twisted Tube with Machine Processed Porous Surface

Abstract The objective of this work was to investigate nucleate pool boiling heat transfer performance and mechanism of R134a and R142b on a twisted tube with machine processed porous surface (T-MPPS tube) as well as to determine its potential application to flooded refrigerant evaporators. In the experimental range, the boiling heat transfer coefficients of R134a on a T-MPPS tube were 1.8–2.0 times larger than those of R134a on a plain tube. In addition, the developed experimental correlations verified that the predictions of the heat transfer coefficients of boiling R134a and R142b on a T-MPPS tube at the experimental conditions were considerably accurate.