Numerical Modeling of Compact High Temperature Heat Exchanger and Chemical Decomposer for Hydrogen Production

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

9-1-2008

Publication Title

Heat and Mass Transfer

Volume

44

Issue

11

First page number:

1379

Last page number:

1389

Abstract

The present study addresses fluid flow and heat transfer in a high temperature compact heat exchanger which will be used as a chemical decomposer in a hydrogen production plant. The heat exchanger is manufactured using fused ceramic layers that allow creation of channels with dimensions below 1 mm. The main purpose of this study is to increase the thermal performance of the heat exchanger, which can help to increase the sulfuric acid decomposition rate. Effects of various channel geometries of the heat exchanger on the pressure drop are studied as well. A three-dimensional computational model is developed for the investigation of fluid flow and heat transfer in the heat exchanger. Several different geometries of the heat exchanger channels, such as straight channels, ribbed ground channels, hexagonal channels, and diamond-shaped channels are examined. Based on the results, methods on how to improve the design of the heat exchanger are recommended.

Keywords

Ceramics; Heat exchangers; Hydrogen as fuel; Fluid mechanics; Mathematical models

Disciplines

Aerodynamics and Fluid Mechanics | Energy Systems | Fluid Dynamics | Heat Transfer, Combustion | Mechanical Engineering | Oil, Gas, and Energy | Thermodynamics

Language

English

Permissions

Use Find in Your Library, contact the author, or interlibrary loan to garner a copy of the item. Publisher policy does not allow archiving the final published version. If a post-print (author's peer-reviewed manuscript) is allowed and available, or publisher policy changes, the item will be deposited.

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