PRESSURE DROP AND FORCED CONVECTIVE HEAT TRANSFER IN HETEROGENEOUS POROUS MEDIA

Enhanced heat transfer in thermo-fluid systems can be achieved by extending the heat
transfer surface area. Metal foam and wire screens both offer a high surface area and have
potential as heat transfer media. However, a consequence of the large surface is that the
pressure drop increases as fluid is passed through the media. In this research
heterogeneous samples of metal foams and wire mesh screens were tested with the aim
of producing enhanced performance. The hydraulic and the thermal performance depends on
the pore shape, pore size, thermal conductivity and heat capacity of the matrix. Whilst
many studies aimed to investigate the heat and the mass transfer of homogenous porous media
structure, Little effort has been made to investigate the performance of heterogeneous
structures. Experiments have been performed on the heat transfer effectiveness and the flow
kinetic energy losses in heterogeneous porous matrixes, made of a combination of metal
foam slices and mesh wire screens Hydraulic and the thermal performance parameters such
as; the permeability, friction factors, and heat transfer parameters were found.