Analysis of the thermohydrodynamic behavior of a cooling system equipped with adjustable fins crossed by the turbulent flow of air in forced convection.

The present study focused on researching a technique that can make a cooling system more efficient in terms of heat transfer. To achieve this, it is possible to modify the thermal conductivity of its cooling fluid or the structure of its flow. In this study, we have opted for the second technique. To do this, we sought to create singularities in the flow by inserting vertical and rotating baffles around the vertical. The study field is a channel of rectangular section, placed horizontally, and crossed by the incompressible and turbulent flow of a fluid (air) in forced convection. Geometrically, the physical problem describes mathematically. A system of hyperbolic equations governs it; Navier–Stokes equations derive from the laws of conservation of mass and momentum and the state's law that derives from the principle of conservation of energy. A finite volume scheme ensures the discretization of the governing equations and the numerical analysis's boundary conditions. The turbulence is modeled using the standard k-ɛ model, while the pressure–velocity coupling problem solves by applying the SIMPLE algorithm. The proposed numerical computational model validates by comparing the computed results with those of literature correlations. The model was then applied to practical cases where a Reynolds number in the range (12,000, 16,000) has chosen. The orientation angle (θ) of the baffles is chosen equal to (0°, 5°, 7°, 13°, 15°) with a different orientation direction. The calculated results are presented in map form for the different physical fields (of axial velocity, temperature) or in graphical form for the different factors and coefficients (friction factor, amount of heat removal, average Nusselt numbers, and thermal performance factor). The results obtained show that the system is made more efficient with a thermohydrodynamic behavior that varies significantly with the baffles' orientation. The heat transfer rate increased, and the pressure drops reduced. For an orientation angle of (θ = 5°), the thermal performance factor is around 2.323, and 2.45, for Re = 12,000, and 16,000, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]