Enhancing natural convection through mechanical vibration: Eccentric rotation of square cavity

Önen M. C., Arıcı M.

Fourteen International Conference on Thermal Engineering: Theory and Applications, Yalova, Turkey, 25 - 27 May 2023, vol.1, no.1

  • Publication Type: Conference Paper / Unpublished
  • Volume: 1
  • City: Yalova
  • Country: Turkey
  • Kocaeli University Affiliated: Yes

Abstract

This study numerically investigates the enhancement of natural convection heat transfer through the application of two-directional mechanical vibration driven by an electric motor that is eccentrically connected to an air-filled square cavity. The Rayleigh and vibrational Grashof numbers are used to define the natural convection and vibrational conditions, which are respectively set to 10^4 and  10^5, and the heat transfer rate improvement is assessed in terms of the Nusselt number. The numerical simulations show that this approach significantly improved heat transfer mechanism, with the area averaged Nusselt number for eccentric rotation condition has increased by 57% compared to the non-vibrational case. These findings may have important conclusions for improving the efficiency of heat transfer in various engineering practices.

 

Keywords: Natural convection, Mechanical vibration, Eccentric vibration, Heat transfer.