Exercise-9

Heat transfer through cross flow

heat exchanger with Ansys Fluent

Risto Filkoski and Monika Uler Zefikj

Edited and curated by the Ansys Academic Development Team

[email protected]

© 2024 ANSYS, Inc.

Summary

The problem analyzed refers to cooling steam which is passing through steel tubes by using
water as cooling medium. The water inlet velocity is 0.002 m/s and the temperature is 300 K.
The hot fluid (steam) velocity is 0.001 m/s and the temperature is each tube is different (tube
1 – 400K, tube 2 – 410 K, tube 3 – 420 K, tube 4 – 430 K, tube 5 – 440 K, tube 6 – 450 K). The
steam passes through 6 steel tubes.

Table of Contents

1. Pre-processing........................................................................................................ 3
1.1 Geometry.......................................................................................................... 3
1.2 Meshing............................................................................................................. 5
2. Processing............................................................................................................... 9
2.1 Setup................................................................................................................. 9
3. Post-processing....................................................................................................... 11
3.1 Results .............................................................................................................. 11

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1. Pre-processing
1.1 Geometry
Right click on Geometry and select Design Modeler in order to generate the geometry of the heat
exchanger. The units are defined in the Unit tab on the top ribbon. In this case set the unit to be
millimeters. The dimensions of the heat exchanger are given in Figure 1 and 2.

Figure 1 : Cross flow heat exchanger geometry (face)

Figure 2 : cross flow heat exchanger geometry (side)

First select the Sketching tab from the small window on the left, select Rectangle and draw the rectangle
with a starting point from 0 on the coordinate system. On the left on the window titled Sketching
Toolboxes select Dimensions, go to the sketch and mark the height and length (H1 300mm, V1 50mm).
Go to Create dropdown menu from the top ribbon and select the option Extrude. Select Sketch1 from
the XY Plane in the small upper window on the left titled Tree Outline and click on Apply in the small
lower window on the left titled Details view. In the Operation option select Add Frozen, in the FD1,
Depth insert the dimension of extrusion, in this case 500mm. To realize the operation select Generate
from the top ribbon. To continue drawing the pipes select the New Sketch, select Sketch2 from the XY
Plane in the small upper window on the left titled Tree Outline, go to sketching tab below the same
window and select circle.

Figure 3 : New Sketch icon

Draw a circle on the face of the rectangle. To define the dimensions, select Dimensions from Sketching
Toolboxes, go to the sketch and mark the distances from the center of the circle to the upper and lower
wall of the rectangle. In this case the distance is 25mm.

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 Figure 4 : Rectangle geometry Figure 5 : Pipe Geometry

Now go to Create on the top ribbon and select Extrude. On the small bottom window that appears on
the left titled Details of Extrude2 insert Sketch 2 in the Geometry section, Add Frozen in Operation and
500mm in Depth. Then click the Generate button on the top ribbon. To form 6 tubes, go to Create on
the top ribbon, select Pattern. On the small bottom window on the left titled Details of Pattern1 select
Sketch 2 as Geometry, select the Direction, write 50mm in Offset and 5 in Copies. Then click Generate.

Figure 6 : Forming a pattern Figure 7 : Boolean operation

In order to form the final geometry of the heat exchanger go to Create on the top ribbon and select
Boolean operation. Select all solid bodies from sketch2 as Tool Bodies, select Subtract as Operation,
and the first solid body (block) as Target Body. Go to Preserve Tool Bodies? in the small lower window
on the left and select Yes. Then go to Generate.

Now select all solid parts from the small upper window on the left called Tree Outline, right click, and
select Form New Part and go to Generate.

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 Figure 8 : Forming a new part
Close the window. With this step the geometry of the pipe is finished.
1.2 Meshing
Double click on Mesh to open the workspace for generating and editing the mesh of the created
geometry. On the left side on the small vertical window right click on Mesh and select Generate Mesh,
which automatically generates a mesh.

Figure 9 : Hiding body

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Then, right click on Mesh, go to Insert Method. In the Method option select MutliZone, in the Mapped/
Swept Type select Hexa. Then go to Generate.

There are different meshing methods in Ansys, including Tetra Meshing, Hexa Meshing, Quad/Tri
Meshing, Sweep Meshing, Multi-Zone Meshing etc. The choice of meshing method depends on the
type of analysis and the characteristics of the geometry. Here we use the Multi-Zone Meshing method
where different regions of the model are meshed separately using various meshing methods which
allows more precise control over the mesh in different areas of the model. The Mapped/Swept Type is
Hexa using hexahedral elements because it is recommended for models with regular shapes.

Figure 10 : Details of MultiZone Mesh Method Figure 11 : Generated MultiZone Mesh

Next right click on Mesh option in the small upper window on the left, go to Insert, then click Sizing.
New small window will appear on the bottom left side titled Details of Sizing. Now select Edge from the
top ribbon and select the outer and inner circles of the pipes (by holding ctrl option).

Figure 12 : Edge icon

In the Type option insert Number of Divisions, in Number of Divisions insert 30, and go to Generate
Mesh.

Figure 13 : Edge sizing Figure 14 : Generated mesh at pipe inlets

Again, click on the Edge icon from the top ribbon. Now select the upper and lower rectangle (8 edges),
right click on Mesh and select Insert Sizing. In the Type option insert Number of Divisions, in Number
of Divisions insert 100, and go to Generate Mesh.

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To check the mesh quality, click on Mesh, in the Display option select Skewness.

Checking mesh quality is essential to ensure that the mesh accurately represents the geometry and
provides reliable results for the simulations. The mesh quality can be checked using the Mesh Metrics
in the Quality tab based on different criteria like Aspect Ratio, Skewness, Orthogonal Quality etc. The
skewness quality check measures the deviation of the element from an ideal shape. High skewness
values can lead to inaccurate results.

Figure 15 : Mesh Skewness

Right click on Mesh option in the small upper window on the left, go to Insert, then click Sizing. New
small window will appear on the bottom left side titled Details of Edge Sizing2. Now select Edge from
the top ribbon and select the upper and inner rectangle of the element (by holding ctrl option). In the
Type option insert Number of Divisions, in Number of Divisions insert 100, and go to Generate Mesh.

Select the Face icon from the top ribbon, then click on the surface, right click and select Create Named
Selection.

Figure 16 : Icon Face

Then write the name of the surface in the empty line. Name all the boundary surfaces, such as inlet,
outlet, and pipe wall.

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 Figure 17 : Inlet Figure 18 : Outlet

Figure 19 : Heated pipe inlet Figure 20 : Pipe walls

Now, go to Geometry → Part in the upper small window, select the Solid parts which are pipes, and
right click to hide them. Select the Face icon from the top ribbon, select the inner wall of the pipes,
right click and go to Create Name Selection. Insert name pipe wall.

Next click the Body icon from the top ribbon, select the rectangle block, right click on it, go to Create
Name Selection and call it fluid domain.

Figure 21 : Fluid Domain Figure 22 : Heated fluid domain

Next, hide the rectangle block and show the pipes. Using the Body icon select all 6 pipes, right click
Create Named Selection, and insert name heated fluid domain.

Figure 23 : Body Icon

Next, go to the Outline window, click on Mesh. On the lower window that appears called Details of
Mesh open the Sizing dropdown menu, go to Mesh Defeaturing and select No. Click Generate Mesh.
Close the window to finish the meshing step. After closing the window right click on Mesh and select
Update to link the mesh with the CFD solver. Green check mark should appear next to the name.

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2. Processing
2.1 Setup
Double click on Setup in order to open Ansys Fluent. First the settings window Fluent Launcher appears
where double precision should be selected. After selecting the box click Start.

Figure 24 : Fluent Launcher windows

From the Setup menu from the small vertical window on the left titled Outline View open the Models
dropdown menu and double click Energy. Turn on the Energy equation by checking the tick mark next
to Energy Equation and selecting OK. Double click on Viscous (SST k-omega) and select laminar flow
model. Continue to the Materials dropdown menu from the small vertical window on the left to select
the liquid and solid materials. Right click on Fluid and select new to open the Create/Edit Materials
window to define the materials used. Select the Fluent Database to find the material needed. Find
water-liquid as an incompressible fluid with constant density. After finding the material select it, click
copy and change/create button, to create the material in the Materials tab. Do the same for water-
vapor, select the Fluent Database, copy and create the new material.

Figure 25 : Create/Edit Materials window - fluid Figure 26 : Create/ Edit Materials window - solid

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Open the Solid dropdown menu from the small vertical window on the left. Right click and select New.
From the Fluent Database select material type solid, then select steel.

Double click the Cell Zone Conditions from the small vertical window on the left, double click on Fluid
Domain to open the Materials panel. Select water-liquid from the dropdown menu from the Material
Name and select Apply then Close. Double click on Heated Fluid Domain and select water-vapor from
the dropdown menu from the Material Name. Select Apply then Close.

Figure 27 : Cell zone conditions Figure 28 : Boundary condition

Next double click the Boundary Conditions dropdown menu to define the parameters for each zone.
Double click on HP inlet 1 to open a new window for defining the desired parameters. Select the
Momentum tab and define the Velocity Magnitude to be 0.001 m/s. Select the Thermal tab and define
the Temperature to 400K, then click Apply then Close. All HP inlet pipes have the same value for
velocity, whereas the temperature is increasing according to the information in the Summary. The
HP inlets are velocity-inlet type, whereas the HP outlets are pressure-outlet type. These options are
displayed in the small window called Task Page – Boundary Conditions, when double clicking on the
Boundary Conditions from the Outline View window on the left.

The inlet velocity in the fluid domain (the rectangle) is 0.002 m/s, whereas the temperature is 300K.
The material is steel.

Figure 29 : Pipe wall material selection Figure 30 : Solution method

The fluid domain inlet is also velocity-inlet type, whereas the fluid domain outlet is pressure-outlet
type.

Now go to the Solutions dropdown menu from the small vertical window on the left and double click
on Methods. In the new window that appears select the SIMPLEC scheme, for the Spatial Discretization
in the Gradient field select Green-Gauss Cell Based.

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The SIMPLEC solution method means Semi-Implicit Method for Pressure-Linked Equations—Consistent,
which is an algorithm widely used for solving steady-state and transient, incompressible flow problems
where density variations are negligible compared to the variations in velocity and pressure. It is a
pressure-based solver, and the pressure is decoupled from the velocity, leading to improved stability
and robustness for solving complex flow problems. ANSYS Fluent offers several solution methods, and
the choice of the solver depends on the nature of the flow problem and the desired balance between
accuracy and computational efficiency.

Go to the Monitors menu, double click on Residual and enter the value of 1e-6 in each of the sections
for continuity, x-velocity, y-velocity, z-velocity, and for energy, for better solution accuracy. Then select
OK.

Figure 31 : Residual Monitors window

Double click on Initialization from the Solution menu and click Initialize. Double click on the Run
calculation, enter the Number of Iterations to 1000 and select Calculate. The results are shown as text
data in the Console tab and as graph in the Graphics tab. After the calculation is complete select OK
and close the window.

The SIMPLEC algorithm is an iterative procedure that ensures the continuity equation and momentum
equations are satisfied in a coupled manner. The pressure correction, velocity correction and pressure
update steps are repeated iteratively until the solution converges to a satisfactory level. Convergence is
typically determined by monitoring residuals of the governing equations or other convergence criteria.
3. Post-processing
3.1 Results
Double click on the Results menu to open the post-processing window. Select the Streamline icon from
the top ribbon. The default name of the new streamline is Streamline 1. According to the preferences

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the name can be changed and written on the line next to Name. Click OK to form a new streamline.

Figure 32 : Streamline icon

On the menu that appears on the left named “Details of Streamline 1”, in the Domain field select All
Domains, in the Start From option enter Fluid domain, in the Max Points insert 1000 and select Apply.
The variable should be velocity in order to analyze the water velocity profile inside the fluid domain.
The velocity streamlines will appear in the window on the right.

Figure 33 : Frontal view of velocity streamlines in the fluid domain

The results show that the water velocity is variable throughout the length of the cross flow heat
exchanger (see Figure 33). As the water passes through the heat exchanger and around the pipes the
velocity changes. There are velocity vortexes formed in the space between the pipes. This is due to the
presence of obstacles along the length of the fluid domain. However, in that area the water velocity is
very low (dark blue color – almost zero) and does not affect the water flow in the other regions. As the
distance from the pipe wall to the wall of the fluid domain is decreasing the velocity is increasing, as
can be seen from the color of the streamlines (yellow, orange and red).

To analyze the velocity streamline from the inlet to the outlet we should again use the Streamline
option, but in the Start from field we should select Inlet. The other parameters stay the same.

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 Figure 34 : Frontal view of velocity streamlines from Figure 35 : Side view of velocity streamlines from
inlet to outlet inlet to outlet
To see the velocity streamlines of the water flow around the pipes we can use animation. Select the
Animation icon from the top ribbon. In the new window that appears select Streamline 2 as object to
animate, adjust the speed of animation, and press play.

Figure 36 : Animation icon

In order to see the velocity profile presented through vectors, go to the Vector icon on the top ribbon
to enter a new vector. The default name of the new vector is Vector 1. According to the preferences the
name can be changed and written on the line next to Name. Click OK to form a new vector.

Figure 37 : Vector icon

A new window appears on the left titled “Details of Vector 1”. In Location enter fluid domain. In the
Variable tab the velocity vector is selected by default. Select Apply and unselect the Streamline 1 to
see the velocity distribution through vectors. Figure 38 shows the water velocity distribution inside
the fluid domain. The water has the highest velocity in the space between the fluid domain wall and
the pipe wall, considering that as the cross-section area decreases the velocity increases. As can be
additionally seen from the Figure, the velocity is increasing as the distance from the fluid domain inlet
is increasing. The water is gaining velocity as the path length increases.

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 Figure 38 : Velocity Vector
If we want to analyze the velocity distribution inside the fluid domain (around the heated pipes) we
select the icon Volume Rendering from the top ribbon. Select Insert Volume Rendering from the top
ribbon. Click OK to form a Volume Rendering.

Figure 39 : Volume Rendering icon

In the Domain field we select Fluid domain, in the Variable field we select Velocity, and in the Range
we select Global, then click Apply. Figure 40 shows similar results as Figure 34 and Figure 38 presented
in different view. Again, the lowest velocity is expressed with dark blue and the highest velocity with
red color. The lowest velocity of the water is after each pipe or in the region between the pipes. The
velocity is higher as the water streams near the pipe wall.

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 Figure 40 : Frontal view of the fluid domain with velocity distribution around the heated pipes
If we want to do the same but for the velocity distribution inside the heated pipes in the Domain field,
we should select Heated fluid domain. Figures 41 and 42 show the velocity distribution of the steam
inside the pipes. Again, blue color presents lower velocity and red color presents greater velocity. As it
can be seen from Figure 41, the cross section of the pipe, the steam velocity is lower near the pipe wall
and as the distance to the center of the pipe is decreasing the velocity is increasing. Figure 42 shows
that the steam velocity is constant throughout the length of the pipe.

Figure 41 : Frontal view of the fluid domain with Figure 42 : Side view of the fluid domain with velocity
velocity distribution inside the heated pipes distribution inside the heated pipes
If we want to analyze the temperature distribution inside the heated pipes, we can use the Volume
Rendering option. On the menu that appears on the left named “Details of Volume Rendering” select All
Domains as Domains, and Temperature as Variable. Select Apply. Figure 43 presents the temperature
distribution of the steam along the pipe length. As given in the input data of the task, the temperature
of the steam is different in each pipe. The lowest temperature is given with green color and the highest
with red color.

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 Figure 43 : Temperature distribution inside the pipes
In order to analyze all the parameters’ changes along the pipes we need to create a new plane. Go to
the Location icon from the top ribbon and select Plane. The default name of the new plane is Plane 1.
According to the preferences the name can be changed and written on the line next to Name. Click OK
to form a new plane.

Figure 44 : Inserting new plane for results presentation

A new window appears on the left titled “Details of Plane 1”. In the Geometry tab select the XY as the
plane in the Method option, add the distance from the Z-axis to be 250mm and select Apply. Go to the
Insert Contour icon on the top ribbon to form a new contour.

Figure 45 : Contour icon

A new window appears on the left titled “Details of Contour”. In the Geometry tab select Plane in the
Locations option, Pressure in the Variable option, and 100 as # of Contours. Figures 46 and 47 present

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the pressure distribution in the fluid domain. From the cross section of the fluid domain, it can be seen
that as the water enters the heat exchanger the pressure is high. Along the length of the exchanger the
pressure is distributed, and it starts to decrease. This can be seen from the color change in the Figure.
As expected, the pressure is decreasing as the distance from the beginning to the end of the heat
exchanger is increasing. At the end of the fluid domain the pressure is lowest.

Figure 46 : Frontal view of the plane with pressure Figure 47 : Frontal view of the plane with pressure
distribution inside the fluid domain distribution inside the fluid domain

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