Library Subscription: Guest
Heat Pipe Science and Technology, An International Journal

Published 4 issues per year

ISSN Print: 2151-7975

ISSN Online: 2151-7991

THERMAL PERFORMANCE OF A HIGH-TEMPERATURE SOLAR ABSORBER EMBEDDED WITH LIQUID METAL HEAT PIPE

Volume 5, Issue 1-4, 2014, pp. 689-696
DOI: 10.1615/HeatPipeScieTech.v5.i1-4.800
Get accessGet access

ABSTRACT

A numerical study was conducted to predict the heat transfer performance of a high-temperature solar absorber with liquid-metal heat pipes. The maximum temperature of the system would be about 1500 K. The absorber would be subject to a high density solar irradiation with concentration ratio between 1200 and 2000. The cavity of the absorber had dimensions of 80 mm in diameter and 50 mm in length, with aperture diameter of 40 mm. Six L-type heat pipes with 10 mm in diameter transferred heat from the side and end walls of the absorber to a coolant flowing through a heat exchanger attached to the outer surface of the end wall. The interfaces were designed so that the heat collected by the absorber was able to be transferred only through heat pipes to the heat exchanger. The operating temperature of the heat pipe was expected to be 750 to 900 K depending on the heating and cooling conditions on the evaporator and condenser sections. The material of the absorber and heat pipe shell were stainless steel 316. The working fluid of the heat pipe was sodium. The coolant of the heat exchanger was silicon oil and water. Uniform heat flux was assumed over the inner surface of the absorber cavity. Adiabatic boundary conditions were imposed at the outer walls of the absorber, the heat exchanger and the wall of non-contacted heat pipe surfaces. The effective thermal conductivity of the heat pipe was assumed to be 8,000 W/m-K at the specified temperature, based on an in-house experiment. FLUENT software was used for numerical analysis. Typical result showed that the maximum temperature difference of the heat pipes in contact with the absorber was 760 K. It was demonstrated numerically that the heat pipe would exhibit very excellent heat transfer performance.

Begell Digital Portal Begell Digital Library eBooks Journals References & Proceedings Research Collections Prices and Subscription Policies Begell House Contact Us Language English 中文 Русский Português German French Spain