Performance Evaluation of Different Designs of Locomotive Intercoolers

Heat exchangers of two different designs, used for the cooling of turbocharged air for locomotive diesel engines were experimentally studied to characterize the performance as well as to investigate the loss of effectiveness over time. Performance criteria including initial effectiveness, pressure drop and effectiveness degradation due to thermal shocks were characterized for a typical intercooler. Thermal and flow performance tests as well as severe shock tests were conducted in the laboratory at full-scale flow and geometric conditions to study the drop in effectiveness experienced in the field. The inlet Reynolds number for airside, based on the inlet flow conditions and pipe diameter is 2.13 × 105. The inlet Reynolds number for waterside, based on the inlet flow conditions and pipe diameter is 2 × 105. Mechanisms for the effectiveness drop due to thermal transients are discussed. Significant improvements in effectiveness degradation characteristics were achieved with a proposed new design while maintaining initial effectiveness. Overall, the new design was found to be significantly improved compared to the current design.