Heat Transfer Enhancement in Split and Recombine Flow Configurations: A Numerical and Experimental Study

Heat transfer enhancement in laminar regime by split and recombine (SAR) mechanism, based on the baker’s transformation, is investigated. Two different heat exchangers, called SAR1 and SAR2, are studied. Their geometries are inspired from the previous studies reported in the literature. The working fluid on both, shell and tube side, is water and the temperature on the shell side is kept constant. Experiments are carried out for the Reynolds number range 100<Re<3000 when the Prandtl number is between 4.5 and 7.5. The results show that the convective heat transfer coefficient in the first element of heat exchanger SAR1 is higher than that in the second one, i.e. SAR2. However, the variation in the convective heat transfer coefficient from the first to the third element along the heat exchanger SAR2 is less significant than that observed for SAR1. Moreover, SAR2 causes a higher pressure drop, especially when Re>1000, and provides a less uniform temperature field at the outlet.