LOCAL THERMAL NON-EQUILIBRIUM MODELLING OF CONVECTIVE HEAT TRANSFER IN HIGH POROSITY METAL FOAMS

Abstract

In this paper, forced convective heat transfer in a rectangular channel filled with aluminium metal foam and exposed to a constant heat flux is examined numerically with the thermal non-equilibrium assumption. A constant heat flux boundary condition is applied from the upper side of the channel. A numerical model is first validated with the available experimental results. Next, the effects of different configurations of metal foams with different porosities and different PPI values on fluid flow and heat transfer are examined. Results are given by average Nusselt number and pressure drop factor for different Reynolds numbers. A performance factor is also defined and the effect of different configurations on performance factor is comparatively examined. The results show that the heat transfer rate and pressure drop significantly depending upon Reynolds number, configuration and porosity.