Investigation of Heat Transfer Characteristics in Double Tube Heat Exchanger with Helical Turbulator Using CFD

The mechanism to increase thermal heat transfer will directly influences the performance increment in the heat transfer system. In the heat transfer applications, the improvement of heat exchange also would substantially increase heat transfer efficiency and part of its economical operation. The double tube heat exchangers are primarily ideal for high temperature and high-pressure applications due to their limited diameters. Turbulent enhancer used in heat exchanger pipes is an important way to increase efficiency. Several techniques have been developed to achieve required heat transfer speeds within the specified design and length of the heat exchanger with economic pumping capacity. Helical inserts are the most common and efficient methods for heat transfer enhancement in heat exchangers. This article attempts to explore the performance of an exchanger for double tube with a helical insert using ANSYS CFX fluid dynamics software. The pitch of the inserts is varied in three levels and heat transfer characteristics were studied and compared.