LAPSE:2023.23585v1
Published Article
LAPSE:2023.23585v1
Numerical Characterization of an Ultrasonic Mist Generator as an Evaporative Cooler
March 27, 2023
Pre-cooling of inlet air using evaporative cooling is an effective approach to enhance the performance of air-cooled condensers in air conditioning applications. Ultrasonic mist generators have emerged as a promising alternative to conventional evaporative cooling systems based on cooling pads or spray cooling. This paper presents the developed numerical model of an ultrasonic mist generator for the evaporative pre-cooling of the inlet air of the condenser in air conditioning applications. The model was validated against the experimental data obtained in a wind tunnel experimental facility. A parametric analysis including some physical variables involved in the cooling process was carried out, including the main axial air velocity, the injection air velocity and the water mass flow rate of atomized water. The dimensionless groups water-to-air mass flow and air-to-air mass flow ratios were found to most affect the average evaporative cooling efficiency. A maximum value of 0.654 was found for the studied conditions. The optimization analysis carried out shows that the operational ranges leading to the best overall performance are 5 × 10 − 4 ≤ m ˙ w / m ˙ a T ≤ 0.002 and 0.035 ≤ m ˙ a i / m ˙ a T ≤ 0.05 . Under these conditions, there is a better distribution of the water mist throughout the control section and a more homogeneous and effective evaporative cooling process.
Keywords
Computational Fluid Dynamics, cooling efficiency, evaporative cooling, ultrasonic nebulizer
Suggested Citation
Ruiz J, Martínez P, Martín Í, Lucas M. Numerical Characterization of an Ultrasonic Mist Generator as an Evaporative Cooler. (2023). LAPSE:2023.23585v1
Author Affiliations
Ruiz J: Department of Mechanical Engineering and Energy, Universidad Miguel Hernández, Avda. de la Universidad, s/n, 03202 Elche, Spain [ORCID]
Martínez P: Department of Mechanical Engineering and Energy, Universidad Miguel Hernández, Avda. de la Universidad, s/n, 03202 Elche, Spain [ORCID]
Martín Í: Department of Mechanical Engineering and Energy, Universidad Miguel Hernández, Avda. de la Universidad, s/n, 03202 Elche, Spain [ORCID]
Lucas M: Department of Mechanical Engineering and Energy, Universidad Miguel Hernández, Avda. de la Universidad, s/n, 03202 Elche, Spain [ORCID]
Journal Name
Energies
Volume
13
Issue
11
Article Number
E2971
Year
2020
Publication Date
2020-06-09
Published Version
ISSN
1996-1073
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Original Submission
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PII: en13112971, Publication Type: Journal Article
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LAPSE:2023.23585v1
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doi:10.3390/en13112971
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Mar 27, 2023
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Mar 27, 2023
 
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