International Communications in Heat and Mass Transfer 34 (2007) 72 82

www.elsevier.com/locate/ichmt

Heat transfer and turbulent flow friction in a circular

tube fitted with conical-nozzle turbulators
Pongjet Promvonge a,, Smith Eiamsa-ard b
a
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, King Mongkut's Institute of Technology Ladkrabang,
Bangkok 10520, Thailand
b
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Mahanakorn University of Technology,
Bangkok 10530, Thailand
Available online 26 September 2006

Abstract

The paper deals with an experimental study of the influence of conical-nozzle turbulator inserts on heat transfer and friction
characteristics in a circular tube. In the present work, the turbulators are placed in the test tube section with two different types: (1)
diverging nozzle arrangement (D-nozzle turbulator) and (2) converging nozzle arrangement (C-nozzle turbulator). The turbulators are
thoroughly inserted inside the tube with various pitch ratios, PR = 2.0, 4.0, and 7.0. The Reynolds number based on the bulk average
properties of the air is in a range of 8000 to 18,000 and the experimental data obtained are compared with those obtained from the plain
tube and from the literature. The experimental results reveal that increasing the Reynolds number at a given pitch ratio of the turbulators
leads to the significant increase in Nusselt number indicating enhanced heat transfer coefficient due to rising convection as the flow
increases. However, the friction factor at a given Reynolds number considerably increases with the reduction of pitch ratio and Reynolds
number. The D-nozzle arrangement, creating stronger reverse/turbulence flow, provides higher the heat transfer rate and friction factor
than the C-nozzle arrangement. The heat transfer rates obtained from using both nozzle-turbulators, in general, are found to be higher
than that from the plain tube at a range of 236 to 344%, depending on Reynolds number and the turbulator arrangements. In addition,
proposed correlations from the present experimental data for Nusselt number and friction factor are also presented.
2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Heat transfer enhancement; Friction; Re-circulation/reverse flow; Turbulator; Nozzle-turbulator

1. Introduction

The reverse flow devices or the turbulators are widely employed in thermal engineering applications. The reverse flow
is sometimes called re-circulation flow. The effect of reverse flow and boundary layer disruption (dissipation) is to
enhance the heat transfer coefficient and momentum transfers. The reverse flow with high turbulence can improve
convection of the tube wall by increasing the effective axial Reynolds number, decreasing the flow cross-section area, and
increasing the mean velocity and temperature gradient. It can help to produce the higher heat fluxes and momentum
transfer due to the large effective driving potential force but also higher pressure drop. The strength of reverse flow and the
reattached position are the main interest in many heat transfer applications such as heat exchangers, combustion chambers,

Communicated by W.J. Minkowycz.

Corresponding author.
E-mail addresses: kppongje@kmitl.ac.th (P. Promvonge), smith@mut.ac.th (S. Eiamsa-ard).

0735-1933/$ - see front matter 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.icheatmasstransfer.2006.08.003
 P. Promvonge, S. Eiamsa-ard / International Communications in Heat and Mass Transfer 34 (2007) 7282 73

T1:1
T1:2 Nomenclature
T1:3
T1:4 A Heat transfer surface area, m2
T1:5 Cp Specific heat of air, J/kg K
T1:6 D Inside diameter of the test tube, m
T1:7 f Friction factor
T1:8 h Heat transfer coefficient, W/m2 K
T1:9 I Current, A
T1:10 k Thermal conductivity of air, W/m K
T1:11 L Length of the test section, m
T1:12 l Pitch length, m
T1:13 M Mass flow rate, kg/s
T1:14 Nu Nusselt number
T1:15 P Pressure drop, Pa
T1:16 PR Pitch ratio defined as pitch length divided by tube diameter, (l/D)
T1:17 Pr Prandtl number
T1:18 Q Heat transfer rate, W
T1:19 Re Reynolds number
T1:20 t Thickness of the test tube, m
T1:21 T Temperature, C
T1:22 T Mean temperature, C
T1:23 U Average axial velocity inside the test section, m/s
T1:24 V Voltage, V
T1:25 Kinematic viscosity, m2/s
T1:26 Density, kg/m3
T1:27 Dynamic viscosity, Ns/m2
T1:28
T1:29 Subscripts
T1:30 a Air
T1:31 b Bulk
T1:32 c Convection
T1:33 i Inlet
T1:34 o Outlet
T1:35 p Plain tube
T1:36 w Wall
T1:37

gas turbine blades, and electronic devices. Junkhan et al. [1] reported the heat transfer with several types of turbulators
located in a tube to provide energy savings. Promvonge and Eiamsa-ard [2] experimentally studied the effects of the
conical turbulator combined with the snail entrance on heat transfer rate and flow friction in a heat exchanger. Eiamsa-ard
and Promvonge [3] investigated the enhancement efficiency in a tube by using V-nozzle turbulators at different pitch ratios.
Ayhan et al. [4] studied numerically and experimentally the heat transfer in a tube by means of truncated hollow cone
inserts. Durmus [5] also examined the effect of cutting out conical turbulators, placed in a heat exchange tube, on the heat
transfer rates with four different types of turbulators and four conical-angles (5, 10, 15 and 20). Yakut et al. [6]
experimentally investigated the effect of conical-ring turbulators on the turbulent heat transfer, pressure drop and flow-
induced vibrations. Their experimental data were analyzed and presented in terms of the thermal performances of the heat-
transfer promoters with respect to the heat-transfer enhancement efficiencies for a constant pumping power. Yakut and
Sahin [7] reported the flow-induced vibration characteristics of conical-ring turbulators used for heat transfer enhancement
in heat exchangers. They pointed out that the Nusselt number increased with the rising Reynolds number and the maximum
heat transfer was obtained for the smallest pitch arrangement.
In the above literature review, most of the conical-ring turbulators are in a truncated hollow cone shape with constant
thickness throughout and diverging arrangements. None of them are in conical-nozzle geometry with cylindrical outer
74 P. Promvonge, S. Eiamsa-ard / International Communications in Heat and Mass Transfer 34 (2007) 7282

surface. In the present work, the conical-nozzle turbulators assumed as a reverse/turbulence flow device, are, therefore,
employed with two different turbulator arrangements. The strength level of the reverse/turbulence flow is generated from
the separation and reattachment of a boundary layer occurring between pairs of the turbulators for each pitch ratio used
(PR = 2.0, 4.0, and 7.0). All of the experiments are carried out at the same inlet conditions with the Reynolds number, based
on the tube diameter (Re), in a range of 8000 to 18,000.

2. Experimental set up

The experimental set-up in the present investigation is shown schematically in Fig. 1. The loop consisted of a 7.5 kW
blower, orifice meter to measure the flow rate, and the heat transfer test section. The inside and outside diameters of the
copper test tube having a length of L = 1250 mm and 1.5 mm thickness (t), are 47.5 mm and 50.5 mm, respectively as
depicted in Fig. 2(a). The tube was heated by continually winding flexible electrical wires providing a uniform heat flux
boundary condition. The electrical output power was controlled by a variac transformer to obtain a constant heat flux along
the entire length of the test section and by keeping the current less than 3 A. The outer surface of the test tube was well
insulated to minimize convective heat loss to surroundings, and necessary precautions were taken to prevent leakages from
the system. The inner and outer temperatures of the bulk air were measured at certain points with a multi-channel
temperature measurement unit in conjunction with the RTD PT 100 type temperature sensors as can be seen in Fig. 2(a).
Fifteen thermocouples were tapped on the local wall of the tube and the thermocouples were placed round the tube to
measure the circumferential temperature variation, which was found to be negligible. The mean local wall temperature was
determined by means of calculations based on the reading of copperconstantan thermocouples.
Fig. 2(ab) represent the nozzle-turbulator arrangements used in the present experiment. The turbulator was made of
aluminum with 47.5 mm (1.0D) in length and its end diameters were 46 mm and 26 mm. In each test run, the
turbulators were placed in two type arrangements: 1) diverging arrangement (D-nozzle turbulator) and 2) converging
arrangement (C-nozzle turbulator). The turbulators were placed inside the test tube with three different pitch lengths, l
of arrangements, having l = 95 mm (PR = 2.0), l = 190 mm (PR = 4.0), and l = 332.5 mm (PR = 7.0), for each run of the
experiments.

3. Experimental procedure

In the apparatus setting above, the inlet bulk air at 25 C from a 7.5 kW blower was directed through an orifice meter and
passed to the heat transfer test section. The air flow rate was measured by the orifice meter, built according to ASME

Fig. 1. Schematic diagram of experimental heat transfer set-up.

 P. Promvonge, S. Eiamsa-ard / International Communications in Heat and Mass Transfer 34 (2007) 7282 75

Fig. 2. Test tube fitted with the nozzle-turbulators, (a) C-nozzle and (b) D-nozzle arrangements.

standard [8]. Manometric fluid was used in U-tube manometers with specific gravity (SG.) of 0.826 to ensure reasonably
accurate measurement of the low pressure drop encountered at low Reynolds numbers. Also, the pressure drop of the heat
transfer test tube was measured with an inclined U-tube manometer. The volumetric air flow rates from the blower were
adjusted by varying motor speed through the inverter and measured by the orifice meter situated upstream of the test tube.
During the experiments, the bulk air was heated by an adjustable electrical heater wrapping along the test section. Both the
inlet and outlet temperatures of the bulk air from the tube were measured by multi-channel RTD PT 100 type temperature
sensors, calibrated within 0.1C deviation by thermostat before being used. It was necessary to measure the temperature at
15 stations altogether on the outer surface of the heat transfer test pipe for finding out the average Nusselt number.
In each test run, it was necessary to record the data of temperature, volumetric flow rate and pressure drop of the bulk air
at steady state conditions in which the inlet air temperature was maintained at 25 C. The Reynolds number of the bulk air
was varied from 8000 to 18,000. The various characteristics of the flow, the Nusselt number, and the Reynolds numbers
were based on the average of tube wall temperatures and of inlet and outlet air temperatures. The local wall temperatures,
inlet and outlet air temperatures, the pressure drop across the test section and air flow velocity were measured and recorded
to evaluate and analyze the heat transfer rate of the heated tube. The average Nusselt numbers were calculated and
discussed where all fluid properties were determined at the overall bulk mean temperature.

4. Data reduction and uncertainty

In the present work, the air is used as working fluid and flowed through a uniform heat flux and insulated tube. The
steady state of the heat transfer rate is assumed to be equal to the heat loss from the test section which can be expressed
as:

Qa Q c 1

where

Qa MCp;a To Ti VI 2

The convection heat transfer from the test section can be written by
~
Qc hATw Tb 3
where
Tb To Ti =2 4
and
~ X
Tw Tw =15 5
76 P. Promvonge, S. Eiamsa-ard / International Communications in Heat and Mass Transfer 34 (2007) 7282

Fig. 3. Verification of Nusselt number of plain tube.

where Tw is the local wall temperature and evaluated at the outer wall surface of the test tube. The averaged wall
temperature is calculated from 15 points of surface temperatures lined between the inlet and the exit of the test tube.
The average heat transfer coefficient, h and the average Nusselt number, Nu are estimated as follows:
~
h MCp;a To Ti =ATw Tb 6

Nu hD=k 7

The Reynolds number is given by

Re UD=m 8

Friction factor, f can be written as:

DP
f  L  U 2  9
D q 2

in which U is mean velocity of the tube. All of thermo-physical properties of the air are determined at the overall bulk
air temperature from Eq. (4).

Fig. 4. Verification of friction factor of plain tube.

 P. Promvonge, S. Eiamsa-ard / International Communications in Heat and Mass Transfer 34 (2007) 7282 77

The uncertainties of the reduced data obtained experimentally are determined. The uncertainty in the data calculation is
based on Ref. [9]. The maximum uncertainties of non-dimensional parameters are 5% for Reynolds number, 10% for
Nusselt number and 15% friction. The uncertainty in the velocity measurement is estimated to be less than 7%, and
pressure has a corresponding estimated uncertainty of 5%, whereas the uncertainty in temperature measurement at the
tube wall is about 0.1%. The experimental results are reproducible within these uncertainty ranges.

5. Results and discussion

The experimental investigations of heat transfer in a copper test tube fitted with nozzle turbulators of the different type of
arrangements (D- and C-nozzle turbulators) and pitch ratios (PR = 2.0, 4.0, and 7.0) are presented. The present experimental results on
heat transfer and flow friction characteristics in a uniform heat-flux tube equipped with nozzle turbulators are reported in terms of Nusselt

Fig. 5. Variation of Nusselt number with Reynolds number for various turbulators.
78 P. Promvonge, S. Eiamsa-ard / International Communications in Heat and Mass Transfer 34 (2007) 7282

number (Nu) and friction factor ( f ). Figs. 3 and 4 show comparison between the present experimental work and correlations from the
literature. In the figures, results of the present work reasonably agree well with the available correlations within 10% in comparison with
friction factor correlation of Petukhov, and within 15% in comparison with Nusselt number correlations of Dittus and Boelter and of
Sieder and Tate [10].

5.1. Effect of nozzle arrangements

Fig. 5 presents the variation of the Nusselt number with Reynolds number, for which the nozzle-turbulators were placed inside a
test tube with two types of turbulator arrangements. As can be seen, enhancing the heat transfer of the D-nozzle arrangement can be
promoted and better than that of the C-nozzle arrangement. This is likely from the higher turbulence and better contact surface area
between fluid and heating wall surface. It is worth noting that the heat transfer rate of the D-nozzle insert is found to be higher than
that of the C-nozzle arrangement around 1020%, 513% and 39% for PR = 2.0, 4.0 and 7.0, respectively. This indicates that the

Fig. 6. Variation of friction factor with Reynolds number for various turbulators.
 P. Promvonge, S. Eiamsa-ard / International Communications in Heat and Mass Transfer 34 (2007) 7282 79

Fig. 7. Variation of Nusselt number with Reynolds number for D- and C-nozzles at various pitch ratios.

effect of reverse flow and boundary layer disruption is to enhance the convection heat and momentum processes. The reverse/
turbulence flow region can improve convection so that it help to increase the effective axial Reynolds number, since the same
throughput must be accommodated by a reduced cross-sectional area of flow, and it results in more severe mean velocity and
temperature gradients which produce higher fluxes of heat and momentum due to the larger effective driving potential for each. On
the other hand, the boundary layer eruption causes global mixing between the core and the wall regions, thus enhancing the
convective process. Under the present experimental conditions, the average Nusselt number for both the D-nozzle and C-nozzle
arrangements (all pitch ratios) is found to be about 236% to 344% over the plain tube. In all cases of both nozzle-turbulators, the heat
transfer rates increase at the expense of high pressure losses. A close examination reveals that the D-nozzle arrangement provides the
maximum value of Nusselt number in the tube at the same pitch ratio.
The variation of the friction factor with Reynolds number for either turbulator arrangements is illustrated in Fig. 6. For the
D-nozzle arrangement, it is found that the friction factor having a peak region at lower Reynolds number and lower PR shows
a rapid decrease as the Reynolds number increases ranging from 8000 to 12,000 and then appears to reduce slightly. As
expected, the D-nozzle turbulator yields higher the pressure loss across the test tube over the C-nozzle turbulator, especially for
low Reynolds number. The friction factor of the C-nozzle is lower than that of the D-nozzle around 40% and 25% for PR = 2.0
and 4.0; and PR = 7.0, respectively.

5.2. Effect of pitch ratios

With the values obtained from the experimental data in the heat transfer test tube, the distributions of Nusselt numbers with Reynolds
number are presented for the nozzle arrangements with three different pitch ratios as shown in Fig. 7. In the figure, the increase in heat

Fig. 8. Variation of friction factor with Reynolds number for D- and C-nozzles at various pitch ratios.
80 P. Promvonge, S. Eiamsa-ard / International Communications in Heat and Mass Transfer 34 (2007) 7282

Fig. 9. Comparison of Nusselt number for (a) D-nozzle and (b) C-nozzle.

transfer rate with reducing pitch ratio is due to the higher turbulent intensity imparted to the flow between the nozzle-turbulators. For the
lowest pitch ratio (PR = 2.0), the rise of Nusselt number is in a range of 310 to 360% over the plain tube. This increase is found to be
approximately 296% and 240% for the pitch ratio, PR = 4.0 and 7.0 respectively. A similar trend is found for using the nozzle-turbulators
with different pitch ratios, the improvement for PR = 2.0 is 1220% and 2545% higher than that for PR = 4.0 and PR = 7.0, respectively.
This may be attributed to a better and rapid mixing of the fluid between the core and the tube surface regions from turbulent fluctuation
flow and the appearance of reverse flow between the nozzle elements, leading to higher temperature gradients.
Variation of friction factor with Reynolds number for the tube fitted with the nozzle inserts of various pitch ratios (PR = 2.0, 4.0, and
7.0) is depicted in Fig. 8. The friction factor of axial flow (plain tube) is also plotted for comparison. It can be seen that the friction factors
obtained from using three different pitch ratios are in a similar trend and decrease with the rise of Reynolds number and pitch ratio. The
increase in friction factor with reverse/turbulent flow, in general, is substantially higher than that with axial flow. This is because of the
dissipation of dynamic pressure of the fluid due to higher surface area and the act caused by the reverse flow. As can be seen, there is a
considerable decrease in the friction factor at about 25% and 60% for using PR= 4.0 and 7.0, respectively, instead of PR = 2.0. The
friction factor tends to decrease with higher Reynolds number and pitch ratio values.
The results of the Nusselt number and the friction factor for both types of nozzle arrangements for all pitch ratios are correlated in
Eqs. (10), (11), (12), and (13) as follows:
For D-nozzle turbulator:

Nu 0:19Re0:71 Pr0:4 l=D0:2 10

f 6049Re0:71 l=D0:5 11
 P. Promvonge, S. Eiamsa-ard / International Communications in Heat and Mass Transfer 34 (2007) 7282 81

Fig. 10. Comparison of friction factor for (a) D-nozzle and (b) C-nozzle.

For C-nozzle turbulator:

Nu 0:174Re0:71 Pr0:4 l=D0:18 12

f 59Re0:29 l=D0:4 13

Figs. 9(ab) and 10(ab) show comparisons between the present experimental data and the present predictions. In the
figures, results of the present work reasonably agree well with the available correlations within 15% in comparison with
experimental data for the friction factor, and within 10% for the Nusselt number.

6. Conclusions

The experimental investigation has been performed with enhancement devices (nozzle-turbulators) for enhancing
heat transfer rate in a constant heat flux circular tube. It is found that the insertion of nozzle-turbulators has significant
effect on the enhancement of heat transfer which the turbulator is used as a reverse/turbulence flow generator.
Correlations for the Nusselt number and the friction factor based on the present experimental data are introduced for
practical use. In addition, the heat transfer rate in the test tube can be promoted by fitting with nozzle-turbulators.
Despite very high friction, the turbulators can be applied effectively in places where pumping power is not significantly
taken into account but the compact size including ease of manufacture installation is required.
82 P. Promvonge, S. Eiamsa-ard / International Communications in Heat and Mass Transfer 34 (2007) 7282

Acknowledgement

The author would like to acknowledge the Thailand Research Fund (TRF) for financial support of this research.

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