[Physics] design of the heat exchanger…in chimney

heatthermodynamics

heat exchanger diagram

I want to design a heat exchanger in a chimney in order to utilize heat from chimney. I have done several experiments, but I could not determine the exact length of tube (carrying water), such that its inlet temp is ambient temperature and outlet temperature is expected to be 100 degree Celsius. I would be very thankful if some one would help me determine the length of the tube. tube diameter is 10mm (almunium), chimney diameter is(120 mm).

Can anyone help me with formulas involved in calculating the heat transfer and length of the tube…

I already calculated the lenght experimentally but I could not do it mathematically.

Best Answer

Briefly put: you need to know the inlet flow rate of exhaust gasses and the temperature and the power you want to extract. From the power (and your ambient temperature) you also get the flow rate for the water. From this caclulate the log mean temperature difference (LMTD) along the heat exchanger, look for the heat transfer numbers for the configuration your using (one list can be found here - you'll see that there is a wide range of possible transfer values to consider) and you should be able to calculate the surface area you need. A very brief explanation is also found on the wikipedia page for LMTD

Please also note the following: by cooling the exhaust, you may have less natural convection in your chimney, make sure your oven will still work. Also consider a margin of safety in sizing the exchanger, fouling will surely lower the heat transfer over time.

Last not least, this is an engineering question - support engineering stack exchange!

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