Modeling of R-142b Saturated Vapor Condensation in a Horizontal Tube Using the VOF Method in the Wall Conjugate Statement

Abstract

Due to the advanced capabilities of modern computational fluid dynamics (CFD) codes and developed models and algorithms, numerical simulation has become an efficient tool for studying two-phase flows, analyzing the entire totality of the processes occurring in them, and obtaining the data on flow local characteristics, which are difficult to measure directly. Active efforts taken for incorporating new models into various CFD codes should be accompanied by their cross-verification, the results of which can serve as a basis for selecting the most accurate, efficient, and universal models and algorithms. In this article, the results obtained from the solution of the problem about the condensation of R-142b refrigerant saturated vapor in a horizontal tube in the wall conjugate statement using two CFD codes, ANES and ANSYS Fluent, are analyzed. The copper tube’s inner diameter is 28 mm, its length is 2.75 m, wall thickness is 2 mm, and the total mass flux is 47 kg/(m² s). The studies are of relevance for heat recovery installations based on the organic Rankine cycle. The calculations were carried out using the modified Lee model that we suggested previously, and which has been implemented in the ANES CFD code developed at the Department of Engineering Thermophysics, NRU MPEI. The cross verification of the VOF algorithms implemented in the ANES and ANSYS Fluent codes has shown that the results of modeling the saturated vapor condensation in a horizontal tube obtained using the above-mentioned codes are in good agreement with each other and are close to the empirical dependences recommended in the literature sources (M. Shah) for calculating the condensation in a horizontal channel. Data on the distribution of local heat-transfer characteristics over the tube’s inner wall are presented, which demonstrate that the heat-transfer coefficient features an essential nonuniformity over both the tube length and perimeter.