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Abstract: This paper presents flow imaging techniques developed for investigating flow in ejectors. These visualization techniques use the laser sheet method but differ from each other by the kind of the illumination source, the polarization direction of the incident light and the type of the scattering tracers. Each of these methods enables the visualization of specific phenomena (shock structure, flow instabilities, mixing process). Although the flow visualizations are primarily qualitative, they allow the determination of the flow regime, the measurement of the non-mixing length, can indicate suggestions for the design of ejectors and provide the possibility to validate numerical simulations. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Based on prior information on common characteristics of dam distresses extracted from the dam distress database described in a companion paper, this paper attempts to extend the technique of Bayesian networks to the diagnosis of a specific distressed dam. The diagnosis is conducted by combining two sources of information, i.e., global-level knowledge from the database and project-specific evidence. Based on results of the diagnosis, key distress factors for a specific dam can be identified and suitable remedial measures can be suggested. Further, the Bayesian network analysis is conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of the adopted remedial measures. A case study on the diagnosis of a distressed embankment dam, Chenbihe Dam, with seepage problems is presented to illustrate the methodology. In this case study, the observed leakage rates, seepage exit locations, and boundary conditions of the embankment are used as project-specific evidence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Distillers dried grains with solubles (DDGS), a coproduct of ethanol fuel production, is used as an animal feed and often must be transported long distances. DDGS flowability problems often create nuisance in storage and transportation. Materials above the glass transition temperature (Tg) can exist in a "rubbery state," which is often responsible for particle agglomeration and caking. This study investigated the effects of varying condensed distillers solubles (CDS) (10, 15, and 20%, wb), drying (100, 200, and 300°C), and cooling temperature (-12 and 35°C) levels on the Tg of DDGS. Tg ranged from 34 to 58°C and 41 to 59°C for cooling temperatures of - 12°C and 35°C, respectively. Tg data were used to develop an overall regression model, which yielded a predictive model with R2 of 0.74 and SEM of 3.16. Using this model, optimum drying and cooling temperatures were determined. These conditions may be used to reduce flow problems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper describes the heat transfer and the pressure drop characteristics of CO2 mixed with small amounts of compatible lubricating oil at super-critical pressures inside horizontal tubes with inner diameters of 1.98 mm and 4.14 mm during cooling. The heat transfer coefficients and pressure drops were measured. The results show that for the oil-free cases, the correlation proposed by Dang and Hihara accurately predicted the heat transfer coefficients and Petukhov’s correlation was found to predict the frictional pressure drops reasonably. Entrainment of the lubricating oil reduced the heat transfer coefficients and increased the pressure drops. Analysis showed that the heat transfer coefficients of the CO2/oil mixture are strongly related to the density and viscosity ratios of the oil to the CO2. An empirical correlation was developed based on the measured data, which predicts most of the experimental data within a deviation of 20%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Flow characteristics of ice slurry were experimentally investigated using narrow tubes. Reynolds number, the diameter of the tubes and the ice packing factor (IPF) were varied as the experimental parameters. Theoretical analysis was carried out using the experimental results. For laminar flow, it was found that the ratio of the coefficients of pipe friction increases with the IPF, and the rate of increase is high in the case of a low Reynolds number. For turbulent flow, the ratio of the coefficients of pipe friction was 1 for each condition in the case of a low IPF. The ratio of coefficients of pipe friction then decreased slightly at a particular IPF and increased with the IPF in the high-IPF region. In theoretical analysis, it was found that the flow characteristics of ice slurry can be treated as those of pseudoplastic fluid and clarified using the apparent Reynolds number. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Mal-distribution of airflow is an important factor for the performance of air-cooled multi-coil air-cooled condensers. This study is an attempt to investigate the effects of different included angles between the coils of the condenser. It has been found in this study that it can be a mean to improve the performance of multi-coil condensers without using larger heat transfer surfaces. A commercially used four-coil condenser of an air-cooled water chiller was used as the base case in the tests and analysis. The results show that the variation of the included angle can increase the airflow rate by 7.85%, which corresponds to 5.29% increase in heat transfer. The improvements were found to be due to the reduction of the stagnant flow regions of the heat exchanger coils, and more even flow distribution through the coils. Test data were used to verify the computer model of the four-coil heat exchanger. The same tested fan performance characteristic was used in all of the analyses. The research results are important as air-cooled condensing units can be designed to better performance merely by changing the configuration of the coil arrangements. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This paper presents a novel strategy for predicting the performance of open vertical refrigerated display cabinets which is based on a modified two-fluid (MTF) model and an adaptive support vector machine (ASVM) algorithm. A MTF model (physical model) was built for open vertical refrigerated display cabinets, and then an ASVM algorithm (machine learning algorithm) was built. To verify the quantity of air leakage from the cabinet during operation, an important performance factor of display cabinets, an MTF model was built. After the training and validation data sets were constructed from the output of the MTF model, the problem was solved using an ASVM algorithm. The defrosting water quantity and total energy consumption / total display area (TEC/TDA), achieved from the experiments by using the predicted combination of the controlled parameters, were found to be reduced by 39.2% and 19.3%, respectively, from the experimental results of the original display cabinet. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This paper presents an experimental investigation of coiling effect on the flow of R-407C in an adiabatic helical capillary tube. It has been observed that the coiling of capillary tube significantly influences the mass flow rate of R-407C through the adiabatic helical capillary tube. For the sake of comparison, the experiments have also been conducted for straight capillary tube and it has been observed that the mass flow rates in coiled capillary tube are 5–10 percent less than those in a straight one. The data obtained from the experiments have been analyzed and non-dimensional correlations for the prediction of mass flow rate of R-407C in straight and helical capillary tube have been developed. The proposed correlations predict our experimental data in an error band of ±10 percent. The predictions by developed correlations are also in good agreement with the data of other investigators. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Small dimensions found in modern and novel heat exchanger (HX) designs encounter very challenging manufacturing issues. With current manufacturing techniques HXs in small dimensions will exhibit large tolerances relative to design variables. Hence, the anticipated variation in performance is a concern. Furthermore, small flow channel dimensions are very susceptible to severe fouling and even blockage. Therefore, flow distribution would be uncertain. These uncertainties in dimensions and flow distribution should be accounted for during the design and performance evaluation of new HX geometries with focus on ultra-compact designs. This paper outlines an effort to theoretically evaluate the performance of an air-to-water HX, assembled from tubes with non-conventional heat transfer surfaces. Vertical spacing within this HX is subject to a predefined statistical distribution compounded with uncertainty in water flow rate through each flow path (i.e., tube). A new implementation technique for ɛ-NTU is proposed in order to accommodate different air conditions on both tube sides. A Monte Carlo simulation approach is used to estimate the HX performance distribution. This approach is applied to three HX designs showing the performance degradation subject to geometrical and flow uncertainties. The simulation results under uncertainty provided useful insights into the reasons for the performance degradation and showed great impact to the uncertainty distribution. Overall, the proposed HX design with the smallest dimensions showed the least performance degradation due to manufacturing and operating conditions uncertainty. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: A multilayer two-dimensional model of beef carcass chilling using CFD-generated heat transfer coefficients was used to calculate the parameters of leg and shoulder cooling curves, assuming an exponential cooling model. A central composite experiment was designed to systematically vary air velocity, side weight and fat thickness. Comparison with experimental data suggests that the predicted characteristic time for the leg, and hence the cooling time to a given temperature, should be multiplied by a correction factor 1.07. The effects of airflow direction and of radiation heat transfer have been quantified. A correlation was proposed to estimate leg centre temperature from shoulder temperature. The shortcut formulae and methods presented here will be useful in the design and troubleshooting of industrial beef chillers. They could also be used in Monte Carlo simulations where a large number of samples are considered, to take into account random variations in product characteristics and operating conditions. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The objective of this paper is to investigate the effect of nanoparticle on the frictional pressure drop characteristics of refrigerant-based nanofluid flow boiling inside a horizontal smooth tube, and to present a correlation for predicting the frictional pressure drop of refrigerant-based nanofluid. R113 refrigerant and CuO nanoparticle were used for preparing refrigerant-based nanofluid. Experimental conditions include mass fluxes from 100 to 200kgm−2 s−1, heat fluxes from 3.08 to 6.16kWm−2, inlet vapor qualities from 0.2 to 0.7, and mass fractions of nanoparticles from 0 to 0.5wt%. The experimental results show that the frictional pressured drop of refrigerant-based nanofluid increases with the increase of the mass fraction of nanoparticles, and the maximum enhancement of frictional pressure drop is 20.8% under above conditions. A frictional pressure drop correlation for refrigerant-based nanofluid is proposed, and the predictions agree with 92% of the experimental data within the deviation of ±15%. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: A hybrid method for optimizing refrigerant distribution in evaporators is presented that involves the use of small balancing valves in each circuit along with a primary expansion device to control the overall superheat from the evaporator. The flow balancing valves could be located upstream or downstream of the evaporator. This paper presents the results of a study to investigate the benefits of this hybrid scheme for both upstream and downstream flow balancing for the case of air flow mal-distribution. In order to perform this investigation, a simulation model was developed to consider evaporator flow mal-distributions for a 10.55kW residential R410A heat pump and then validated through comparisons of predicted results with measurements. Simulation results show that there are significant benefits in controlling the superheat of each circuit of evaporators through the hybrid–individual superheat control method. Furthermore, the upstream refrigerant flow control consistently outperforms the downstream refrigerant flow control, and recovers most of the loss in cooling capacity and COP due to non-uniform air flow distribution. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

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Abstract: Capillary tubes are extensively used in small refrigeration and air-conditioning systems with synthetic refrigerants and hydrocarbons. For CO2 transcritical applications, it has been shown that the capillary tube demonstrates an intrinsic capability of adjusting the upper pressure close to the optimal value in response to changes of gas-cooler heat sink temperature. The CO2 flow rate through four capillary tubes of various lengths, diameters and materials was measured in a test rig. Each capillary tube was tested with inlet pressure varying from 7.5MPa to 11MPa and inlet temperature from 20°C to 40°C. Outlet pressure varied from 1.5MPa to 3MPa. The experimental results were validated against different numerical and approximate analytical solutions of the capillary tube equations. These models give good predictions only if the friction factor of the capillary tube is calculated accounting for its dependence on the tube roughness. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This paper outlines an algebraic model for simulating the transcritical expansion of carbon dioxide through adiabatic capillary tubes. The model was put forward based on the analytical solution of the momentum conservation equation assuming an isenthalpic expansion process. The theoretical model predictions were compared with 66 experimental data points covering different operating conditions and tube geometries. A good agreement between the experimental and calculated mass flow rates was achieved, with more than 94% of the data points lying within an error band of ±10%. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This paper advances a study of the transcritical expansion of carbon dioxide (R-744, CO2) through adiabatic capillary tubes. The influence of both operating conditions (inlet and exit pressures, inlet temperature) and tube geometry (capillary diameter and tube length) on the CO2 mass flow rate was experimentally evaluated using a purpose-built testing facility with a strict control of the measured variables. A dimensionless correlation to predict the refrigerant mass flow rate as a function of tube geometry and operating conditions was developed. In addition, a theoretical model was put forward based on the mass, energy and momentum conservation principles. The model results were compared with experimental data, when it was found that the model predicts 95% of the measured refrigerant mass flow rate within an error band of ±10%. The model was also employed to advance the knowledge about the transcritical carbon dioxide flow through adiabatic capillary tubes. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Upscaling is needed to transform the representation of non-additive space-dependent variables, such as permeability, from the fine grid of geostatistical simulations (to simulate small-scale spatial variability) to the coarser, generally irregular grids for hydrodynamic transport codes. A new renormalisation method is proposed, based on the geometric properties of a Voronï grid. It is compared to other classic methods by a sensitivity analysis (grid, range and sill of the variogram, random realisation of a simulation); the criterion is the flux of a tracer at the outlet. The effect of the upscaling technique on the results appears to be of second order compared to the spatial discretisation, the choice of variogram, and the realisation. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The Note presents an unconventional computational method for irrotational and incompressible fluid flows over lifting bodies. At first, Laplace''s equation for the velocity potential is solved with internal Dirichlet conditions expressed at the nodes of the mesh rather than at smooth surface positions. Continuous distributions of surface normal doublets are used, and obtaining the surface velocity field with such distributions becomes straightforward. Secondly, an original Neumann type formulation of the Kutta conditions is proposed. Expressing the minimization of the velocity flux across the wall shows a significant reduction of the discretization impact upon the computed global efforts when compared to local no-load conditions. The method can be applied to 2 or 3-dimensional flows, steady or not. To cite this article: P. Ardonceau, C. R. Mecanique 337 (2009). [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: During transport using refrigerated vehicles, this being a vital link in the cold chain, the maintaining of even temperature throughout the cargo is essential in order to preserve the quality, safety and shelf life of perishable food. Within the refrigerated container, the temperature level and its homogeneity are directly governed by airflow patterns. The design of the air-distribution system should allow these airflows to compensate heat fluxes exchanged through the insulated walls or generated by the products. In this paper, a reduced-scale model and CFD predictions were used to investigate experimentally and numerically the airflow patterns within a typical refrigerated truck configuration loaded with vented pallets filled with spherical objects. The experiments were carried out using a laser Doppler velocimetry and thermal sphere-shaped probes located inside the pallets. The aim was to investigate air velocity characteristics above and within pallets. The performance of ventilation was characterized with and without supply air duct systems. Both configurations are extensively used in refrigerated transport. Full-scale measurements were also performed within a load of fruit during transport in a refrigerated truck in order to evaluate the temperature distribution under given operating conditions. The numerical modelling of airflow was performed using the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) fluent code and the Reynolds Stress Model (RSM) turbulence model. Numerical and experimental data make it possible to evaluate the air ventilation levels and their heterogeneity between the pallets. The numerical predictions show reasonable agreement with experimental data. The studied supply air duct system improves significantly the homogeneity of ventilation in the vehicle. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The present experimental investigation has been carried out to investigate the effects of various geometric parameters on the mass flow rate of R-134a through diabatic spiral capillary tube. In diabatic flow, the capillary tube is bonded with the compressor suction-line to form a counter-flow exchanger. The lateral type of diabatic capillary tube has been investigated in the present experimental study. The major geometric parameters investigated are capillary tube diameter, capillary tube length and coil pitch. In addition, effect of inlet subcooling on the mass flow rate through diabatic spiral capillary tube is also done. A comparison of the performance of diabatic spiral capillary tube has been made with adiabatic spiral capillary tube. Generalized empirical correlation for diabatic spiral capillary tube has also been proposed. It has been found that the predictions of the proposed correlation lie in the error band of ±7%. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: A comprehensive review of flow boiling characteristics and flow pattern visualization of refrigerant/lubricant oil mixtures is presented in this paper. First, various parameters influenced by the lubricant oil in convective boiling of refrigerants, such as mass velocity, vapor quality, oil concentration and geometric characteristics of the heat transfer tube are discussed. The effects of the unavoidable introduction of the lubricant oil on the thermodynamics properties of a refrigerant are described. Then, a review of the main experimental studies of flow boiling of refrigerant/lubricant oil mixtures is presented and also describes research with halocarbons, carbon dioxide, hydrocarbons and ammonia. There is no agreement among these studies regarding the effect of the oil in the evaporator, with studies showing an increase or decrease in the heat transfer coefficient. However, in relation to pressure drop, all the results presented the same trend, increasing the pressure drop with increasing oil concentration. Next, the flow patterns of refrigerant/oil mixtures are illustrated together with a selection of video images. It is possible to notice the difference in frothing formation with respect to the particular refrigerant and tube geometry. Some predictions of oil effects on the heat transfer coefficient and pressure drops based on the mixture physical properties are then presented and the trends compared to data. Finally, some suggestions for future work are given. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The purpose of this work is to investigate the entropy generation in ice slurry pipe flow. Fully developed laminar flow is considered with uniform heat flux at the walls. The fluid behaves as a non-Newtonian fluid following the power-law model. Expressions for velocity, entropy generation number and average entropy generation number are obtained as function of mass fraction of ice and the dimensionless group parameter. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This paper investigates the flow boiling heat transfer in a typical domestic refrigerator evaporator with horizontal flow, frequent bends and a non-circular cross-section. The mass flux was varied between 21 and 43kg/m2 s, the heat flux between 1 and 5kW/m2 and the vapour quality between 0.2 and 0.8. In spite of a predicted stratified to wavy-stratified flow pattern complete tube perimeter wetting was believed to occur except for the lowest mass flux and for positions upstream of the first bend. It was concluded that the bends helped wetting the tube perimeter. The experimental data revealed heat transfer coefficients higher than predicted with conventional correlations. This was suggested to be explained by thin film evaporation at a perimeter repeatedly wetted by liquid slugs. A simple correlation based on the pure convective part of the Shah correlation [3] was derived from the experimental data. The mean deviation of this was 16.9% compared to Shah''s 54.7%. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This paper presents an experimental investigation for the flow of R-134a inside an adiabatic spirally coiled capillary tube. The effect of various geometric parameters like capillary tube diameter, length and coil pitch for different capillary tube inlet subcoolings on the mass flow rate of R-134a through the spiral capillary tube geometry has been investigated. It has been established that the coil pitch significantly influences the mass flow rate of R-134a through the adiabatic spiral capillary tube. The effect of providing pressure taps on the capillary tube surface has a negligible effect on the mass flow rate through the capillary tube. It has been concluded that the effect of coiling of capillary tube reduces the mass flow rate by 5–15% as compared to those of the straight capillary tube operating under similar conditions. The data obtained from the experiments are analyzed and a semi-empirical correlation has been developed. The proposed correlation predicts more than 91% of the mass flow rate which is in agreement with measured data in an error band of ±10%. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Most of the currently available streamflow neural network models are either recurrent neural networks or feed-forward multi-layer perceptron (FF-MLP) requiring past flow values for lead time prediction. These models cannot be used for modelling ungauged watersheds because past flow values are not available in such cases. This study proposes a FF-MLP algorithm that relies only on low-cost, readily available meteorological data and careful time series manipulation prior to model building, and thus, is suitable for modelling streamflow in ungauged watersheds. The proposed approach was tested on four watersheds (5 to 130 km2) in the Canadian Boreal forest and was found to provide an efficient modelling alternative for daily streamflow predictions. To assess the possibility of successful model transferability from a gauged watershed to a hydrologically similar ungauged watershed, a new remotely sensed hydrologic similarity measure — SWMIR_SI — was proposed and was found to provide a successful indicator of basin similarity. The square of Pearson's correlation coefficient, r2, was evaluated to exceed 0.71 when SWMIR_SI was regressed to models' "goodness-of-fit" statistics reflecting the usefulness of the approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A prototype liquid-to-refrigerant heat exchanger was developed with the aim of minimizing the refrigerant charge in small systems. To allow correct calculation of the refrigerant side heat transfer, the heat exchanger was first tested for liquid-to-liquid (water-to-water) operation in order to determine the single-phase heat transfer performance. These single-phase tests are reported in this paper. The heat exchanger was made from extruded multiport aluminium tubes and was designed similar to a shell-and-tube heat exchanger. The heat transfer areas of the shell-side and tube-side were approximately 0.82m2 and 0.78m2, respectively. There were six rectangular-shaped parallel channels in a tube. The hydraulic diameter of the tube-side was 1.42mm and of the shell-side 3.62mm. Tests were conducted with varying water flow rates, temperature levels and heat fluxes on both the tube and shell sides at Reynolds numbers of approximately 170–6000 on the tube-side and 1000–5000 on the shell-side, respectively. The Wilson plot method was employed to investigate the heat transfer on both the shell and tube sides. In the Reynolds number range of 2300–6000, it was found that the Nusselt numbers agreed with those predicted by the Gnielinski correlation within ±5% accuracy. In the Reynolds number range of 170–1200 the Nusselt numbers gradually increased from 2.1 to 3.7. None of the previously reported correlations for laminar flow predicted the Nusselt numbers well in this range. The shell-side Nusselt numbers were found to be considerably higher than those predicted by correlations from the literature. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: A modified two-fluid turbulence model is established to simulate the flow and heat transfer characteristics of air curtains in an open vertical display cabinet. The air exiting the back panel (AEBP), the inner air curtain and the outer air curtain are taken as the first fluid and described with the standard turbulence model (KE). The air outside the display cabinet is considered as the second fluid and calculated by the laminar model. Different from the existing two-fluid model, the mass transfer rate equation between the turbulent and the non-turbulent fluids is modified, and the face coefficient of honeycomb (the ratio of the effective area to the total area of honeycomb) is fetched with the volume fraction of air curtain in order to conveniently depict the blow characteristics of the honeycomb. The comparisons between the simulated temperatures and the experimental ones indicate that the modified two-fluid model (MTF) can give better agreement with the measurements than KE and two original two-fluid models (TF1 and TF2). [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: We performed a study on the effect of the discharge airflow rate of the ceiling type air-conditioner on ventilation performance in the lecture room with the mixing ventilation. The experiments and CFD were conducted for analyzing ventilation performance. The concepts of mean air age and indoor CO2 concentration were used for evaluating ventilation performance. We made the CO2 generation model in the simulation and calculated a lot of cases with respect to the airflow rate of air-conditioner and the mechanical ventilation rate. And the selected experimental measurements were performed in the lecture room of the same layout as the numerical one for verifying simulation results. Mean air age is gradually increased, but CO2 concentration is oppositely decreased in the occupied zone with the increment of the discharge airflow rate of the ceiling type air-conditioner. This result shows that both mean air age and residual life time must be considered for evaluating ventilation performance when the contaminants are generated indoors. And the increment of discharge airflow of the ceiling type air-conditioner can induce the piston effect and push the contaminants out of the occupied zone. From this result, it is found out that ventilation performance can be increased when the momentum source like an air-conditioner is used in the room with the mixing ventilation. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This paper presents the results of experiments and modelling carried out on ice slurries flowing in uninsulated steel pipes with a nominal diameter of 50mm. The slurries used were formed from 4.75% NaCl aqueous solution and had ice mass fractions in the range 18–42%, with a view to the use of thick ice slurry ‘pigs’ as a pipeline clearing technique. Of particular interest was the distance over which such slurries can survive as plug-like entities, before melting reduces them to ineffective thin two-phase suspensions. The experiments showed that for small volumes of slurry, survivability is directly proportional to the quantity of slurry used, but that increasing the ice fraction has a more marked effect. A simple one-dimensional numerical model that accounts for transportation, heat transfer and melting was developed that produces reasonable predictions. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The applications of electronic expansion valves (EEVs) into multi-type heat pumps and inverter heat pumps in building air-conditioning systems have increased for comfort environmental control and energy conservation. However, test data and mass flow models of EEVs are very limited in open literature. The objectives of this study are to investigate the mass flow characteristics of R22 and R410A through EEVs and to develop an empirical correlation for the prediction of mass flow rates of R22 and R410A through EEVs. Mass flow rates through six EEVs were measured by varying the EEV opening, inlet and outlet pressures, and the subcooling. Mass flow rates of R410A were compared with those of R22 at the same test conditions. Based on the experimental data, an empirical correlation for mass flow predictions in EEVs was developed by modifying the orifice equation. The predictions of the present correlation showed good agreement with the measured data with average and standard deviations of 0.76% and 5.9%, respectively. Approximately 92% of the measured data were within ±10% of the predictions. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Experiments were conducted to study the condensation flow pattern in silicon micro-condensers using water as the medium. Slug-bubbly flow was found to be one of the dominant flows in the micro-condenser and it was a major factor in determining the heat transfer and pressure drop properties of the fluid inside the micro-condenser. The transition from the slug-bubbly flow to a mixed flow pattern was studied. A correlation was obtained to predict when the transition of the flow pattern would occur. Only slug-bubbly flow existed under low steam mass flow rate and high heat transfer rate conditions. As the steam mass flow rate increased or the heat transfer rate dropped, the mixed flow pattern would then appear. In the slug-bubbly flow regime, the heat transfer coefficient and pressure drop in the micro-condensers were investigated in detail. It was found that micro-condensers with smaller channels could exhibit higher heat transfer coefficients with the same Reynolds number. The condensation heat transfer coefficient was higher than that in the tubes with the diameter of centimeter. Pressure drops in the micro-condensers with smaller channels were higher due to the increased transition loss. At the same time, the pressure drop in the micro-condenser was found to be lower than what could be predicted using the macro-scale correlation. Increasing the heat flux would create a longer bubble–film region and fewer unit cells in the micro-condenser resulting in an increased heat transfer coefficient and a decreased pressure drop. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The pipe network generation proposed here assumes that flow in a 3D fracture field is highly channelled, and that there exist invariant crux nodes corresponding to crossroads connecting preferential flow paths whatever the mean head gradient''s direction. The method allows preferentially for these crux nodes by conditioning the simulated network first on a ‘seeding’ of nodes and second, in generating 1D pipes between these nodes. Note that usually, nodes are the consequence (the intersection) of the pipe generation. Pipes can be also conditioned on their length and other features, but this conditioning is not strict, since all pipes must pass by the nodes. In the end, the network is simple without dead ends; each cluster is flowing and connected to the boundaries of the system. This type of network is expected to facilitate further calculations, for instance solving inverse problems in deforming the network by simply moving the crux node locations. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: A dummy port plays an important role in the porting process and the improvement of the performance of a scroll compressor. This paper documents an investigation on the working mechanism of the dummy port in a scroll compressor. To characterize the dummy port effects on the different parts of the scroll compressor, two scroll compressors, one with and the other without a dummy port, are studied comparatively. The flow through the dummy port is examined in the background of an integrated compressor working process. The assembly of the compressor under investigation includes the upper bearing housing, scrolls, check valve, and discharge plenum. The Navier–Stokes equations with a k–ɛ turbulence model are solved at the standard operating conditions of a scroll compressor. Refrigerant-22 is used as the working fluid. The thermodynamic and transport properties of the refrigerant gas are modeled by the Martin–Hou equation of state and power laws, respectively. Global flow physics is investigated first to lay a foundation to understand the working mechanisms that control the porting process before averaging techniques are applied. The behavior of the gas pockets in the porting process is characterized in both geometric and dynamic nature. The time-dependent variation of volume, mass, energy, and volume-averaged field quantities inside the gas pockets are studied throughout the porting process. The impact of the dummy port on the compressor performance is defined. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This paper presents a study of flow regimes, pressure drops, and heat transfer coefficients during refrigerant condensation inside a smooth, an 18° helical micro-fin, and a herringbone tubes. Experimental work was conducted for condensing refrigerants R-22, R-407C, and R-134a at an average saturation temperature of 40°C with mass fluxes ranging from 400 to 800kgm−2 s−1, and with vapour qualities ranging from 0.85 to 0.95 at condenser inlet and from 0.05 to 0.15 at condenser outlet. These test conditions represent annular and intermittent (slug and plug) flow conditions. Results showed that transition from annular flow to intermittent flow, on average for the three refrigerants, occurred at a vapour quality of 0.49 for the smooth tube, 0.29 for the helical micro-fin tube, and 0.26 for the herringbone tube. These transition vapour qualities were also reflected in the pressure gradients, with the herringbone tube having the highest pressure gradient. The pressure gradients encountered in the herringbone tube were about 79% higher than that of the smooth tube and about 27% higher than that of the helical micro-fin tube. A widely used pressure drop correlation for condensation in helical micro-fin tubes was modified for the case of the herringbone tube. The modified correlation predicted the data within a 1% error with an absolute deviation of 7%. Heat transfer enhancement factors for the herringbone tube against the smooth tube were on average 70% higher while against the helical micro-fin tube it was 40% higher. A correlation for predicting heat transfer coefficients inside a helical micro-fin tube was modified for the herringbone tube. On average the correlation predicted the data to within 4% with an average standard deviation of 8%. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Micropump is an important component for the development of micro absorption heat pump systems. To study the performance of microfabricated EO pump with the dimension comparable to the electrical double layer (EDL), a model avoiding the use of the Boltzmann equation was developed to investigate the EO flow instead of using the Poisson–Boltzmann (PB) equation. Generally used Debye–Huckle approximation and symmetric condition are also not involved so this model can be applied in the more complicated EO micropumps. Numerical simulation was carried out to study the distributions of potential, ions and net charge density in the EO micropump. Comparison between the present model and the PB equation was conducted. Using the present model, the EO flow in the EO micropump with overlapped EDL was investigated. It shows that the flow is quite different from the channel with dimension much larger than the EDL, which exhibits plug-like flow characteristics. The errors induced by the PB equation for the pumps with different depths were evaluated. It shows that the accuracy of the PB equation is not good when the EO pump is very thin. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Flow boiling heat transfer coefficient, pressure drop, and flow pattern are investigated in the horizontal smooth tube of 6.1mm inner diameter for CO2, R410A, and R22. Flow boiling heat transfer coefficients are measured at the constant wall temperature conditions, while pressure drop measurement and flow visualization are carried out at adiabatic conditions. This research is performed at evaporation temperatures of −15 and −30°C, mass flux from 100 to 400kgm−2 s−1, and heat flux from 5 to 15kWm−2 for vapor qualities ranging from 0.1 to 0.8. The measured R410A heat transfer coefficients are compared to other published data. The comparison of heat transfer coefficients for CO2, R410A, and R22 is presented at various heat fluxes, mass fluxes, and evaporation temperatures. The difference of coefficients for each refrigerant is explained with the Gungor and Winterton [K.E. Gungor, R.H.S. Winterton, A general correlation for flow boiling in tubes and annuli, Int. J. Heat Mass Transfer 29 (1986) 351–358] correlation based on the thermophysical properties of refrigerants. The Wattelet et al. [J.P. Wattelet, J.C. Chato, B.R. Christoffersen, J.A. Gaibel, M. Ponchner, P.J. Kenny, R.L. Shimon, T.C. Villaneuva, N.L. Rhines, K.A. Sweeney, D.G. Allen, T.T. Heshberger, Heat Transfer Flow Regimes of Refrigerants in a Horizontal-tube Evaporator, ACRC TR-55, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 1994], and Gungor and Winterton [K.E. Gungor, R.H.S. Winterton, A general correlation for flow boiling in tubes and annuli, Int. J. Heat Mass Transfer 29 (1986) 351–358] correlations give the best agreement with the measured heat transfer coefficients for CO2 and R410A. Pressure drop for CO2, R410A, and R22 at various mass fluxes, evaporation temperatures and qualities is presented in this paper. The Müller-Steinhagen and Heck [H. Müller-Steinhagen, K. Heck, A simple friction pressure drop correlation for two-phase flow in pipes, Chem. Eng. Process. 20 (1986) 297–308], and Friedel [L. Friedel, Improved friction pressure correlations for horizontal and vertical two-phase pipe flow, in: The European Two-Phase Flow Group Meeting, Ispra, Italy, 1979 (paper E2)] correlation can predict most of the measured pressure drop within the range of ±30%. The relation between pressure drop and properties for each refrigerant is described by applying the Müller-Steinhagen and Heck correlation. The observed two-phase flow patterns for CO2 and R410A are presented and compared with flow pattern maps. Most of the flow patterns can be determined by the Weisman et al. [J. Weisman, D. Duncan, J. Gibson, T. Crawford, Effect of fluid properties and pipe diameter on two-phase flow patterns in horizontal lines, Int. J. Multiphase Flow 5 (1979) 437–462] flow pattern map. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This paper presents the results of an experimental study aimed at evaluating the elementary filtration properties of a fine cement grout injected in a sand. In a first step, the experimental setup or filtration cell, specially developed for injecting thin samples of sand put under stress, is presented. Next, the results of an experimental programme carried out with this cell are presented, allowing for the study of the influence of basic parameters (density index, consolidation stress, cement concentration in the grout, and injection flow rate) on the filtration properties of a typical grout composed of fine cement. A filtration coefficient is then defined, allowing for characterization of the elementary filtration properties of the tested grout by the sand matrix. Finally, the respective influence of tested parameters on the value of this coefficient is presented and discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper presents a study on the impact of the roughness of a metallic surface on the magnitude of the supercooling during freezing of an aqueous solution. Aqueous solutions of ethanol (5%, 10% and 15% w/w) were used as model solutions. Five tubes of aluminium (internal diameter 8mm) were machined to obtain a roughness between 0.63 and 13.3μm. These tubes were immersed in a refrigerated bath with a programmable temperature scan. Thermocouples located at the inner surface of the tubes and in the solution were used to measure the magnitude of supercooling. Crystallisations were monitored and supercooling released calculated for each experiments. Our experimental results reveal that roughness is the influencing parameter of the supercooling released: larger the roughness, lower the supercooling. Moreover, a power law correlation between the roughness and supercooling was deduced. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Temperature homogeneity in most food refrigeration systems is directly governed by the airflow patterns in the system. Numerical modelling of airflow provides an opportunity to develop improved understanding of the underlying phenomena influencing system performance, which can lead to reduced temperature heterogeneity and increased effectiveness and efficiency of refrigeration systems. With the rapid advances in computational power of recent years, the use of Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) techniques in this application has become popular. This paper reviews the application of CFD and other numerical modelling techniques to the prediction of airflow in refrigerated food applications including cool stores, transport equipments and retail display cabinets. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: A reduced scale model and CFD predictions are used to investigate experimentally and numerically the airflow patterns within a refrigerated truck loaded with slotted but empty pallets. Air velocity measurements are carried out on a reduced scale model with a Laser Doppler Anemometer above and inside the pallets. The numerical predictions obtained with Computational Fluid Dynamics package using the RSM turbulence model showed a satisfactory agreement with experimental data in high velocity zones. An approach was developed to evaluate the local ventilation efficiency and the fresh air within the pallets. The flow rate through the last pallet is about 35 times smaller than for the five first pallets. In terms of fresh air the difference is not so high; the equivalent fresh airflow rate through the last pallet is about six times smaller than for the first pallets. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The heat transfer coefficient and pressure drop during gas cooling process of CO2 (R744) in a horizontal tube were investigated experimentally. The experiments are conducted without oil in the refrigerant loop. The main components of the refrigerant loop are a receiver, a variable-speed pump, a mass flow meter, a pre-heater and a gas cooler (test section). The water loop consists of a variable speed pump, an isothermal tank, and a flow meter. The refrigerant, circulated by the variable-speed pump, condenses in the inner tube while water flows in the annulus. The gas cooler of tube diameter is 6000mm in length, and it is divided into 12 subsections. The pressure drop of CO2 in the gas cooler shows a relatively good agreement with those predicted by Blasius''s correlation. The local heat transfer coefficient of CO2 agrees well with the correlation by Bringer–Smith. However, at the region near Pseudo-critical temperature, the experiments indicate higher values than the Bringer–Smith correlation. Based on the experimental data presented in this paper, a new correlation to predict the heat transfer coefficient of supercritical CO2 during in-tube cooling has been developed. The majority of the experimental values are within 18% of the values predicted by the new correlation. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The purpose of this study was to investigate wound healing and complications following surgery for fracture neck of femur. Seventy-one patients were prospectively divided into two groups, according to the method of skin closure: group A had clips; group B had subcuticular vicryl® sutures. There were 41 patients in group A, and 30 patients in group B. There were 13 males and 58 females with an average age of 84.3 years (range 67–100 years). Thirty-seven patients underwent fixation with a dynamic hip screw, while 34 had undergone either a hemi or total hip arthroplasty. The wounds were inspected at days 2, 5, 7, 10 and 14 days, for discharge, redness and infection. There was a statistically significantly greater amount of wound discharge ( P<0.002) and redness ( P<0.009) in group A (clips) as compared to group B (vicryl). There were three cases of infection; all in patients where clips had been used for skin closure. We concluded that subcuticular vicryl sutures were significantly better than clips in terms of wound healing as well as cost. Except for some decrease in operative time there does not seem to be any advantage in the use of clips for wound closure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: In order to analyze the influence of the deflecting ring on the noise generated by the outdoor set of a split-unit air conditioner, the flow field in the outdoor set is simulated with the CFD software STAR-CD, the relative turbulent intensities are computed and the influence of the width and contoured duct of the deflecting ring on the noise generated by the outdoor set is analyzed. The results of computation and experiment show that there is an optimal width of the deflecting ring, corresponding to the minimum noise generated by the outdoor set. In addition, the influence of the contoured duct of the deflecting ring on the noise generated by the outdoor set is analyzed and a double contoured duct is designed. The results of computation and experiment verify that the deflecting ring with double contoured duct can improve the aerodynamic performance and reduce the noise generated by the outdoor set. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The heat transfer characteristics were experimentally investigated for ice slurry made from 6.5% ethylene glycol–water solution flow in a 13.84mm internal diameter, 1500mm long horizontal copper tube. The ice slurry was heated by hot water circulated at the annulus gap of the test section. Experiments of the melting process were conducted with changing the ice slurry mass flux and the ice fraction from 800 to 3500kg/m2 s and 0–25%, respectively. During the experiment, it was found that the measured heat transfer rates increase with the mass flow rate and ice fraction; however, the effect of ice fraction appears not to be significant at high mass flow rate. At the region of low mass flow rates, a sharp increase in the heat transfer coefficient was observed when the ice fraction was more than 10%. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: In this paper, we analyzed the possibility of the simulations of ice slurry flow based on the known CFD procedures, for both Bingham fluids and mulitiphase flow models (the mixture and Eulerian models). It was shown that in the laminar region, the models selected (the Bingham and mixture model) gave a correct description of momentum transfer. In the turbulent range, corresponding to low values of the Reynolds number, the best agreement between experimental and simulation results (for the single-phase as well as for the multiphase Eulerian model) was obtained when the RNG k–ε turbulence model with the enhanced wall treatment algorithm was selected. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: In this paper we present results of the studies of ice slurry flow in horizontal tubes. The possibility of treating the rheological parameters of ice slurry as being those of Bingham fluid was confirmed. The values of parameters (mass fraction, flow velocity) corresponding to the laminar, intermediate and turbulent flow were determined which permits to optimize the flow in the systems working with this cooling agent. Critical flow velocity and mass fraction of ice values were determined thereby; they correspond to a change in character of an ice slurry flow from a laminar to turbulent motion. Experimental results were compared to the analytical results, based on the Hedström and Tomita algorithms (the laminar and turbulent flow, respectively). The comparison showed a very good agreement between these data. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: A commercial CFD code has been employed to simulate the air flow pattern and the temperature distribution in a frozen food vertical display cabinet. At first the choice of solver parameters has been investigated in a 2D modelisation. 3D simulations have been then performed, and the effects of the cabinet length, of the warm air curtain and of longitudinal ambient air movement have been investigated. The results show that, in short cabinets, 3D secondary vortices at the side walls provide the most important mechanism for hot air entrainment. Comparison with experimental results shows that a 2D simulation is totally inadequate for such configurations, while 3D computations predict refrigeration power within engineering accuracy. Furthermore, the computed refrigerating power shows that even low room air velocity, due to its interaction with the end-wall vortices, has a significant impact on cabinet performance. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: We consider the stability of a porous medium submitted to a steady-state flow with free-boundary. Assuming some hypotheses, it is possible to implement the kinematic method by using an approximate pressure field bounding the true pressure field from below. We are interested in finding such approximate pressure fields and in proving that they bound the true pressure field from below without knowing the true pressure field. We use fields which are solutions of a problem with relaxed conditions with regard to the real problem. Under a uniqueness condition of the solution of a weak formulation of the problem, such fields are lower bounds for the true pressure field. Finally, we give the example of a vertical dam. To cite this article: A. Corfdir, C. R. Mecanique 334 (2006). [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

A key requirement in the evaluation of sliding stability of new and existing concrete gravity dams is the prediction of the distribution of pore pressure and shear strength in foundation joints and discontinuities. This paper presents a methodology for evaluating the hydromechanical behavior of concrete gravity dams founded on jointed rock. The methodology consisted of creating a database of observed dam behavior throughout typical cycles of reservoir filling and simulating this behavior with a distinct element method (DEM) numerical model. Once the model is validated, variations of key parameters including lithology, in situ stress, joint geometry, and joint characteristics can be incorporated in the analysis. A site-specific simulation of a typical reservoir cycle was carried out for Albigna Dam, Switzerland, founded on granitic rock, to assess the nature of the flow regime in the rock foundations and to evaluate the potential for sliding surfaces other than the dam–rock interface to develop. The factor of safety against sliding of various rock wedges of differing geometry present within the dam foundations was also evaluated using the DEM model and conventional analytical procedures. Estimates of crack propagation patterns and corresponding uplift pressures and factors of safety against sliding along the dam–rock interface obtained with the DEM were also compared with those from simplified procedures currently used in engineering practice. It was found that in a jointed rock, foundation uplift estimates after crack development obtained from present design guidelines can be too conservative and result in factors of safety that are too low and do not correspond to the observed behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Stone matrix asphalt (SMA) is a gap-graded mix that contains a high concentration of coarse aggregate, thereby maximizing stone-to-stone contact in the mixture and providing an efficient network for load distribution. Coarse aggregate particles are held together by a rich matrix of mineral filler and stabilizer in the thick asphalt film. This paper presents details on the laboratory studies carried out on stone matrix asphalt (SMA) mixtures with natural fibres and crumb rubber modified bitumen (CRMB). Indirect tensile strength, retained stability, resistance to moisture susceptibility, resistance to rutting, resistance to creep, and resistance to permeability and aging were found to improve with SMA mixtures with CRMB when compared with SMA mixtures with fibres as stabilizers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]