Abstract
An analytn model for working fluids flowing through capillary tubes has been established with the approximate integral method. All the possible flow regimes in the capillary tubes, including subcooled, two-phase and superheated regimes, are covered in the model, and different analytic solutions are given respectively for each flow regime. As examples, the mass flow rates of refrigerants R12, R134a and R600a through capillary tubes are predicted by the model, and compared with those evaluated by a general distributed-parameter model. The mean bias falls into 1% and the maximum bias is 2.2%, while the computation speed of the new model is more than one order of magnitude higher than that of the distributed-parameter one.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Bittle, R. R., Pate, M. B., A theoretical model for predicting adiabatic capillary tube performance with alternative refrigerants,ASHRAE Transactions, 1996, 102(2): 52.
Escanes, F., Perez-Segarra, C. D., Oliva, A., Numerical simulation of rapillary-tube expansion devices,Int. J. Refrig., 1995, 18(2): 113.
Chisholm, D.,Two-phase Flow in Pipelines and Heat Exchangers. New York: Longman Inc., 1983, 77–91.
Churchill, S.W., Frictional equation spans all fluid flow regimes,Chemical Engineering, 1977, 84(24): 91.
Yilmaz, T., Unal, S., General equation for the design of capillary tubes,ASME Journal of Fluids Engineering, 1996, 118 (2): 150.
McAdams, W. H., Wood, W. K., Bryan, H. L., Vaporization inside horizontal tubes II—Benzene-oil mixtures,Transactions of thc ASME, 1942, 64: 193.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
About this article
Cite this article
Ding, G., Zhang, C., Li, H. et al. An approximate analytic model for flow through capillary tubes. Chin. Sci. Bull. 44, 668–670 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03182733
Received:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03182733