CT-36 Horizontal Intube Condensation Heat Transfer and Pressure Drop of Propane

S. Garimella and M. P. Macdonald (Sustainable Thermal Systems Laboratory, Georgia Institute of Technology)

2014

Under contract with HTRI, the Sustainable Thermal Systems Laboratory (STSL) at Georgia Institute of Technology is studying intube condensation with pentane, propane, and propane/ethane mixtures. In the second phase of the study, the STSL acquired condensation heat transfer and pressure drop data using propane as the working fluid. This report reviews the test facility and presents the propane data collected using copper tubes with inside diameters of 7.75 and 14.45 mm at saturation temperatures of 30, 45, 60, 75, 85, and 94 °C for mass fluxes of 150, 300, and 450 kg/m² s. Analysis indicates that literature correlations for the frictional pressure gradient and the heat transfer coefficient do not predict the data well.