۱- Introduction

۲- Methodology

۳- Results and discussion

۴- Conclusion

References

Abstract

This paper presents the effect of heat exchanger design on heat pump performance based on partial load operating conditions. 3-D numerical analysis was conducted to calculate face velocity profiles for each outdoor heat exchanger design (rectangular, cylindrical, and trapezoidal) in 10 different operating conditions. Heat exchanger circuits were modified considering heat exchanger face velocity distributions, and seasonal heat pump performances were calculated with modified heat exchanger design. The maximum seasonal performance enhancement of 7.07% was achieved with a modified heat exchanger design. Air-side flow maldistribution could affect significantly refrigerant path design and heat exchanger performance as well as system performance. The analysis results also revealed that smaller refrigerant circuits at the upper part of the heat exchanger interacting with higher air velocity could further enhance the annual system performance.

Introduction

Energy and environmental issues are critical problems due to rapid increases in energy systems around the world. The International Energy Agency has reported that energy systems such as air conditioning and heat pump systems account for almost 700 million metric tons of CO2 equivalent direct (7%–۱۹%) and indirect emissions (74%) per year, which is responsible for global warming and ozone depletion. Direct emissions can be reduced by introducing low global warming potential (GWP) refrigerants, and indirect emissions can be controlled using a more efficient system [1]. The finned tube heat exchanger is widely used as a condenser or evaporator of heat pump systems, and it is one of the most important components of the systems and plays a significant role in the system size and performance. Therefore, it is important to design more efficient, lightweight, cost-effective, and low power consuming finned tube heat exchangers [2,3]. Heat exchanger performance degradations are associated with maldistribution of refrigerant and face air velocity distribution, particularly for downstream rows as airflow velocity decreases significantly on the lower side [4]. Although it is difficult to measure the air velocity profile experimentally [5], it strongly influences heat exchanger performance [6]. Non-uniform flow distribution has many disadvantages: produces wake in flow [7], changes flow pattern [8], decreases overall heat transfer coefficient [9], and reduces system capacity [10]. Consequently, it also increases pressure drop [11] across the heat exchanger hence increases required pumping power [12–۱۵]. Performance deterioration due to non-uniform flow is not limited to finned tube heat exchangers with louver fins [9] and plate fins [16,17], but also occurs in concentric tube [14], and microchannel condensers of automotive air conditioning systems [18]. These examples highlighted the problem of non-uniform flow distribution in different applications. However, these studies are limited to rated load conditions for specific heat exchanger design. No study has been found in literature that covers face velocity distribution for outdoor heat exchanger under partial load operating conditions. Therefore, it is important to evaluate face velocity profiles under off-design condition.