Electrohydrodynamic enhancement of convective two-phase flow and heat transfer

Project coordinator(s)

Dr. Tony Robinson
Email: [javascript protected email address]
Tel: +353 1 896 3919

Post-graduate Staff

Mr. Gerard Mc Granaghan

Description

Current socio-economic and environmental demands call for energy to be used efficiently & rationally. Furthermore, industry and aerospace drivers require smart, small, lightweight and efficient energy exchange units. In response to these demands, the research community has developed many techniques to enhance the heat transfer in heat exchangers. However, these techniques are typically very invasive and result in massive increases in the required pumping power to force the fluid through the heat exchanger. This often offsets any gains in the enhanced power extraction of the device. The electrohydrodynamic (EHD) technique utilises a relatively non-invasive electric field to positively influence the heat transfer in a convective two phase flow of a dielectric fluid, such as R134a. Although a body of knowledge has been developed for flow boiling and condensation in horizontal channels, no information is available with respect to the effect of gravity i.e. horizontal to vertical channels, & microgravity.