The influence of the wall thermal capacity and axial conduction over a single-phase natural circulation loop: 2-D numerical study

Abstract

 In this paper the natural circulation phenomenon of a differentially heated single-phase natural circulation loop has been numerically investigated. The conservation equations of mass, momentum and energy are solved using a two-dimensional finite difference method. The preliminary results will be presented. The transient and steady-state behavior of the circuit has been investigated. The dependency of the temperature and velocity field on the power input and the wall thermal capacity has been analyzed, as well as the relationship between the most important non-dimensional numbers (Nusselt, Reynolds and the friction factor versus the modified Grashof number). A comparison of the numerical results is made with conventional one-dimensional analysis and with the experimental data. Generally, a good agreement is achieved in the stable region.