Supported by the NSF and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, research addresses some the fundamental barriers to the development and use of polymer heat exchangers for solar heating systems and automotive applications. For more information on the work related directly to solar energy systems see Solar Energy Lab.
The NSF supported research focuses on design, material and heat transfer issues crucial to the successful development of polymer heat exchangers for a range of applications with emphasis on the gas-to-gas and gas-to-liquid heat exchangers used in the transportation industry. The work is a collaboration with Professor Susan Mantell. Design and manufacture of plastic heat exchangers poses several unique problems that must be solved before their benefits can be realized.
1. Materials: Because of the low thermal conductivity of polymers, the wall separating the two fluids should be thin yet be able to withstand the thermal and mechanical loads over the desired lifetime. Liquid absorption and diffusion in polymer tubing pose particular problems in heat exchanger applications involving liquids. Thin-walled tubing coextruded with a vapor barrier is promising. Research has focused on understanding the failure mechanisms of laminates of a brittle barrier layer with the ductile tubing.
2. Mechanical design: The primary challenge is to connect many (hundreds) of these small diameter tubes into a manifold that can withstand the operating pressures of most heat exchanger applications. Research focuses on the behavior of polymer manifold techniques.
3. Heat transfer characteristics: Polymer tube bundles can be woven and interlaced in very complex and unique patterns. Research has focused on design, fluid dynamics and heat transfer of uniquely shaped tubes.
Selected Publications
Selected Abstracts
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