Quasi Steady moving boundary modeling for solar thermal heat-exchangers and simulation of dynamic characteristics by Dr. Rudrodip Majumdar | Department of Energy Science and Engineering

Location and Date:

Wednesday,September 6, 2017, 4:30 pm, LT 101

Abstract

In the present study, a simplified quasi-steady state reduced order model is utilized to investigate moving boundary characteristics in a narrow tube of heat exchanger that carries organic refrigerant as working fluid in the medium solar thermal applications (~ 200 °C). The present model provides the variation in mass flow rates with varying temperature of the heat transfer fluid that exchanges energy with the narrow tube and estimates suitable mass flow ranges for different heat transfer fluid temperatures. The study also brings forth the change in wall segment temperatures of narrow tube for the subcooled, two-phase and superheated regions, with varying heat transfer fluid (HTF) temperature. The wall temperatures and the required mass flow rates are found to be very high with higher HTF temperature. Thus, the model could be useful in determining the viability of the operating conditions based on the changing values of the driving parameters, such as solar power level and the ORC inlet pressure. Development of dynamic model has been proposed where the temporal variation in the heat transfer fluid temperature has been incorporated for more with a view to achieving realistic results.

Bio-sketch

Rudrodip received his B.Tech. degree in Electronics and Communication Engineering from West Bengal University of Technology in 2009. Thereafter, during his M.Tech, he worked in the area of plasma physics and fusion energy at IIT Kanpur. Afterwards, Rudrodip joined North Carolina State University in 2011 to pursue his Ph.D. in Nuclear Engineering. His specialization was in studying flow patterns of hyper-velocity electrothermal plasmas. He was awarded Ph.D. in December 2015. He served as a postdoctoral research assistant at NCSU from December 2015 to August 2016. His current stint at IIT Bombay as an institute PDF began in October 2016. His research interest is in the fields of high enthalpy flow and clean energy technologies. Apart from academics Rudrodip takes great interest in wildlife conservation, nature photography, creative writing and Indian classical music.