THERMAL SCIENCE

International Scientific Journal

Thermal Science - Online First

Xiang Zhou

,

Zhiqiang Sui

,

Haichen Zhao

,

Dingding Yang

,

Xiaoqi Wang

online first only

Numerical and experimental study on the thermal performance of a new plate evaporator and condenser for ocean thermal energy conversion

ABSTRACT
This paper studies a new type of plate evaporator and condenser used for ocean thermal energy conversion. The evaporator and condenser are composed of herringbone smooth curved corrugated sheets, with interlaced arrangement. For the evaporator, the refrigerant R134a enters from the bottom, is evenly distributed to the flow channel between the plates, and flows out after being gathered in the top. For the condenser the flow is the opposite. Water enters from the upper right inlet into the channel between the plates and leaves from the lower left outlet. This paper studies the resistance and heat transfer characteristics of these heat exchangers by means of simulation and experiment. It is found that this type of plate flows evenly in the inter-plate channel, the heat exchange is reasonable, and the rate of corresponding heat transfer and pressure drop are calculated. Through the experimental study of the heat exchange effect of the tested plate heat exchanger in the phase change process, it is concluded that the heat transfer of this kind of heat exchanger under the conditions of the evaporator and the condenser is 64.12 kW and 69.77 kW respectively, and the rate of heat transfer is 1843 W/m2•K and 2104 W/m2•K.
KEYWORDS
Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion, plate heat exchanger, thermal performance, evaporator, condenser, numerical simulation
PAPER SUBMITTED: 2024-02-12
PAPER REVISED: 2024-09-03
PAPER ACCEPTED: 2024-09-20
PUBLISHED ONLINE: 2024-12-07
DOI REFERENCE: https://doi.org/10.2298/TSCI240212259Z
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Numerical and experimental study on the thermal performance of a new plate evaporator and condenser for ocean thermal energy conversion