Experimental investigation of heat transfer enhancement in a circular duct with circumferential fins and circular disks

The characteristics of heat transfer and pressure drop for fully developed turbulent flow in a tube with circumferential fins and circular disks were experimentally studied. The various spacing and sizes of circumferential fins and circular disks were selected as design parameters, while the effects of these parameters on heat transfer enhancement and pressure drop were investigated. In order to quantify the effect of heat transfer enhancement and the increase of pressure drop due to the fins and disks in a tube, the Nusselt numbers and the friction factors for various configurations and operating conditions were compared to those for a corresponding smooth tube. The results showed that the heat transfer rate was significantly enhanced by increasing the height of circumferential fins and decreasing the pitch of circumferential fins. On the other hand, the influence of the disk size and the fin-disk spacing were not significant. Based on the experimental results, a correlation for estimating the Nusselt number was suggested.