Thermosiphon Heat Exchanger for Use in Animal Shelters
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THERMOSIPHON HEAT EXCHANGER FOR USE IN ANIMAL SHELTERS B.S. Larkin J.E. Turnbull R.S. Gowe Gas Dynamics Laboratory Member CSAE Animal Research Institute National Research Council Engineering Research Service Agriculture Canada Ottawa Agriculture Canada Ottawa Ottawa INTRODUCTION The design of various types of clean ation, vapor flow, condensation and heat exchangers to give a desired heat gravity return. This latent heat transport An animal building is ventilated to recovery is well documented; the impor is much more effective than conduction; control heat, water vapor, gases and odors tant question is whether design perfor the tube has an effective conductivity given off by the animals. Where the mance can be maintained under typical which is several orders of magnitude ventilation rate is determined by sets of dusty farm conditions. In the heat higher than that of a copper bar. exhaust fans controlled by interior exchanger tested, the locations where thermostats (the usual method) the heat fouling can collect are all easily acces There is a small temperature drop losses are automatically balanced to the sible, so that cleaning is simple. The tests associated with the pressure difference heat supply. With this arrangement, con evaluated the effect of fouling on the required to cause vapor flow but this is trol of excessive humidity in the building system and ease of cleaning in a typical usually negligible. In an animal shelter is usually no problem as long as outside poultry environment. heat exchanger, the boiling and conden ambient temperature remains above a sing coefficients are high, or about particular minimum. However, with One problem with air-to-air heat ex 400-500o Btu/ft2h°F (2,300-2,800 colder weather a point is reached at changers is the low air-to-surface heat watts/m2°C) so that the temperature which the mean ventilation rate control transfer coefficient. For significant heat drops at the condensing and boiling sur led to balance the animal heat production transfer, large surface areas are required. faces, although not negligible, are accept is too low to remove the water vapor This heat exchanger uses standard mass- able. produced. produced finned tubing to give the required surface area economically within The advantages of this type of heat For example, in a typical well insul compact external dimensions. exchanger are: (i) Secondary surface of ated swine growing building maintained commercial finned tubing where heat is at 60° F (15°C) this heat deficit occurs at transferred between metal and air; about 25°F (-3°C) outdoor temperature. THERMOSIPHON HEAT EXCHANGER (ii) Metal/air interfaces easily accessible For a more detailed discussion see (2), for cleaning, unlike previous plate-type (5), and (6). During colder periods of a Figure 1 shows one element of a heat exchangers; (iii) Simplicity and ease typical Canadian winter the options are: thermosiphon heat exchanger. Heat is of maintenance, with no mechanical (i) to reduce ventilation rate, resulting in transferred from the exhaust duct to the parts, pipe connections, headers or valves high humidity, condensation and odors, inlet duct along the thermosiphon tubes. which may leak; (iv) Compact physical (ii) to maintain higher ventilation to help arrangement of the heat exchanger, fit control humidity but permit a much During assembly, the air is removed ting easily into normal rectangular duct colder building, or (iii) to add enough from the tubes. A measured quantity of ing without complicated headers or heat to maintain adequate ventilation and working fluid (in this case Refrigerant 22) transition pieces. temperature. is put into each tube so that the lower section is filled with liquid and the upper It is also useful to compare this heat One method of adding heat is to section contains vapor. In operation, recovery application with other buildings recover it from the exhaust air with a whenever the inlet air is colder than the such as hospitals, apartments and office heat exchanger. Giese and Downing (2) exhaust air the vapor will start to buildings. The special features of the and Giese and Ibrahim (3) studied tube condense. This reduces the pressure in the animal shelter application are: (i) The and shell heat exchangers. Giese and Bond tube and the liquid begins to boil. The exhaust air is dirty. Tolerance of fouling (1), Turnbulla and Ogilvie (4) studied resulting vapor flows to the cooler section and ease of cleaning are essential, plate-type heat exchangers. Witz and of the tube and condenses, releasing (ii) There are no specialized maintenance Prattb reported on a rock-bed heat technicians at hand. Reliability and ease storage system through which incoming latent heat. Heat is thus transported along the tube by a continuous cycle of evapor- of maintenance are more important and outgoing flows were alternated. (iii) In most buildings a heat exchanger is designed for maximum practical heat Contribution No. 468 and 545 from Engineer a Turnbull, J.E. Performance of a perpendi recovery, i.e. about 75% effectiveness. ing Research Service and Animal Research cular flow air-to-air heat exchanger. Agric. This means that the heat exchanger Institute, respectively. Eng. Ext. Release, Ontario Dep. Agric, recovers about 75% of the theoretical Guelph, Ontario, Nov. 1965. maximum heat recovery, which depends on the temperature difference between b Witz, R.L. and G.L. Pratt. Innovation in the exhaust and intake air streams. When RECEIVED FOR PUBLICATION AUGUST 6, beef confinement housing and equipment. 1974 designed to 75% effectiveness a thermo ASAE paper no. 71-208, 1971. siphon type heat exchanger is more CANADIAN AGRICULTURAL ENGINEERING, VOL. 17 NO. 2, DECEMBER 1975 85 coefficients in a thermosiphon tube, for typical conditions in a heat exchanger. The test section consisted of thick-walled copper tube, 0.951-inch (2.41-cm) inside diameter. Vapor temperatures were measured with a thermocouple passed along a smaller tube (o.d. = 0.061 inch (1.55 mm), i.d. = 0.045 inch (1.14 mm)) running down the center of the main tube. A similar tube was buried in the wall of the main tube, so that the tube wall temperature could be measured by moving a thermocouple along its length. Using the same thermocouple for measuring all temperatures minimized calibration errors. Heat was supplied 0 REGION OF BOILING LIQUID electrically at one end and removed by a (12 OZ. OF REFRIGERANT 22) fluid flowing through a cooling jacket at 0 REGION OF CONDENSING GAS the other end. 0 ROUND SEALED TUBE OF RED BRASS, These tests led to the following empiri OUTSIDE DIAM. 1.00 IN (2.54 CM ) cal correlations, based on the inside tube INSIDE DIAM. 0.902 IN (2.29 CM ) surface: LENGTH 50 IN (127 CM ) 0 ALUMINUM FINS. H6=91 +0.07862 + 2.577 (1) THICKNESS 0.015 IN (0.38 MM ) Hc=645 - 0.0520- 1.24T (2) 6 FINS/IN (2.4/CM), PRESSED ONTO TUBE SURFACE RATIO 20.3/1 where 0 AIR FLOW DIVIDER. GALVANIZED STEEL. Hu = boiling heat transfer coefficient 0 ELEMENTS SLOPED 4.5° FROM HORIZONTAL (Btu/ft2h°F) H„ = condensing heat transfer coefficient (Btu/ft2h F) Q = heat flux (Btu/ft2h)o Figure 1. Diagram of a thermosiphon tube (not to scale) with specifications as used in this T = vapor temperature ( F) experiment. HEAT EXCHANGER The heat exchanger was made up from thermosiphon tube elements (see Figures 1 and 2) banked vertically four tube elements per bank, with one set of aluminum fins. In the first winter nine banks of tubes were used; in the second winter this was reduced to five. TEST OBJECTIVES 1. To demonstrate the operation of a thermosiphon heat exchanger. 1. To verify design correlations. 3. To investigate the effect of fouling on flow and heat transfer. Figure 2. Thermosiphon tube bank. 4. To study the problem of heat ex changer freezing. 5. To evaluate cleaning methods for the expensive than some other types, but at system would fill with ice. This appears heat exchanger and filters. lower effectiveness it is competitive. to be the practical upper limit on With laying chickens (a typical farm effectiveness and is typical of most farm example) 40% effectiveness is about applications. optimum; this will recover enough heat CHICKEN HOUSE INSTALLATION for good ventiliation down to -30 F (-34°C) outside temperature. Below this, LABORATORY TESTS Figure 3 shows the equipment arrange additional heat cannot come from the ment in the attic space of a research exhaust air, otherwise the exhaust flow Laboratory tests were carried out to chicken house at the Animal Research would be cooled below freezing and the measure the boiling and condensing Institute Greenbelt Farm, Ottawa. 86 CANADIAN AGRICULTURAL ENGINEERING, VOL. 17 NO. 2, DECEMBER 1975 o EXHAUST AIR FILTER FROM CHICKEN CAGE ROOM; 4 FILTER ELEMENTS AT 16x25x2IN(40.6x63.5x5.1 CM) © EXHAUST AIR FILTER FROM CHICKEN FLOOR HOUSING ROOM; 4 FILTER ELEMENTS (SAME AS®) © CENTRIFUGAL EXHAUST FAN, DELHI MODEL 412, 3/4 HP MOTOR © FINNED HEAT EXCHANGER BANKS IN GALV. STEEL BOX TILTED 4.5° ACROSS AND 3.5° BACK, FOR CONDENSATE DRAINAGE CONDENSATE DRAIN TUBE FROM LOW CORNER TO MANURE PIT INSULATED EXHAUST DUCT TRAP DOOR STATION FOR TAKING VELOCITY MEASUREMENTS. INSULATED INTAKE DUCT FROM VENTILATED ATTIC CENTRIFUGAL INTAKE FAN, SAME AS (7) DISCHARGES TO ATTIC DUCT. NLET DUCT & ADJUSTABLE INLET HOLES TO POULTRY ROOMS Xv^v-:->>^:-;i>x->:^^^ © ,v® SECTION 'B-B SECTION 'A'-'A' Figure 3. Detail of heat exchanger installation. The ducting and equipment was fitted estimating throughputs. Chickens were direction was about 900 scfm (25.5 into a rather tight triangular duct space housed in cages in one room and on slat m3/min), about 50% higher than the within the roof trusswork, to serve two and litter floor in the other room.