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Flow instability in vertical channels

Book ·
OSTI ID:438862
;  [1]; ;  [2]
  1. Villanova Univ., PA (United States). Dept. of Mechanical Engineering
  2. Columbia Univ., New York, NY (United States). Heat Transfer Research Facility
A simple analytical model to predict the onset of Ledinegg instability in vertical channels under down-flow conditions has been developed and evaluated. The model divides the flow field into four regions based upon the fluid temperature. The pressure drop for each region is then found by solving an appropriate set of equations for each region. The theoretical results are compared to an extensive set of experimental data covering a range of channel diameters and operating conditions. Agreement is excellent, and the prediction of the velocity at which the minimum point in demand curve occurs is well within 10% over the experimental results. A parameter, which is defined as the ratio between the flux level and the heat capacity flowrate is found to be a very accurate indicator of the minimum point velocity.
OSTI ID:
438862
Report Number(s):
CONF-950828--; ISBN 0-7918-1715-6
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

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