Heat Transfer Enhancement in Dimpled Flow Systems
Summary
Dimpled flow systems employ arrays of shallow cavities on heat‐transfer surfaces to disrupt boundary layers, generate streamwise vortices and promote fluid mixing. These passive surface modifications increase the effective surface area and create recirculation zones that enhance convective heat flux, often without substantial additional pumping power. The geometry of each dimple—its shape, depth‐to‐diameter ratio, spatial arrangement and orientation—determines the strength and stability of the vortical structures, as well as the degree of boundary‐layer thinning. Such enhancements have been demonstrated across a range of applications, from compact heat exchangers and micro‐channels to turbine blade cooling passages and marine vehicles, offering potential gains in thermal efficiency, reduced fouling and lower overall energy consumption. Design optimisation balances heat‐transfer augmentation against pressure‐drop penalties to maximise thermohydraulic performance, enabling improvements in industrial processes, power generation and transport systems worldwide.
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Heat Transfer Enhancement in Dimpled Flow Systems publication trend
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Technical terms
Dimple: A controlled depression or cavity on a surface designed to alter local flow patterns and enhance heat transfer.
Boundary layer: The thin region of fluid adjacent to a surface where viscosity governs momentum exchange and thermal gradients develop.
Vortex: A rotating flow structure that promotes mixing between fluid layers and increases convective heat‐transfer rates.
Reynolds number: A dimensionless parameter indicating the ratio of inertial to viscous forces, governing flow regime and stability.
Nusselt number: A dimensionless measure of convective heat transfer relative to conductive heat transport across the fluid layer.
References
- Stereoscopic Micro-PIV measurement of the flow dynamics in a spherical dimple. Experiments in Fluids (2024).
- Effects of Reynolds Number on the Overall Characteristics of Flow and Heat Transfer in the Long Micro-Tube with Dimples. Processes (2022).
- Numerical and Experimental Investigation of Flow and Heat Transfer in Heat Exchanger Channels with Different Dimples Geometries. Machines (2021).
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