Effects of Fin Shape on Condensation Heat Transfer and Pressure Drop inside Herringbone Micro Fin Tubes

Experiments of in-tube condensation of R410A have been carried out for as mooth tube, a h elical micro fin tube and five types of herringbone micro fin tubes. In the herringbone micro fin tube, the micro fins work to remove liquid at fin-diverging parts and collect liquid at fin-converging parts. In the high mass velocity region, heat transfer coefficient of all the herringbone tubes is about 2-4 times higher than that of the helical micro fin tube. In the low mass velocity region, however, the heat transfer coefficients of the herringbone micro fin tubes are equal to or smaller than those of the helical micro fin tube. Up to the fin height of 0.18 mm, the heat transfer coefficient is higher for higher fin, whereas that of ah igher fin tube is saturated. The pressure drop increases with increasing fin height. The helix angle strongly affects the heat transfer and pressure drop. Higher helix angle causes higher heat transfer coefficient and higher pressure drop. In the case of the herringbone tube which has shorter fin and/or smaller helix angle, pressure drops are equal to or lower than that of the helical micro fin tube, whereas those of other tubes are higher.