Certificate
The Department of Chemical Engineering, Heritage Institute of Technology,
West Bengal University of Technology, Anandapur, Kolkata- 700107
This is to certify that Mr. Siddhartha Sinha has been carrying out the project
{Thesis) work entitled …
under my guidance and supervision.
[Link]
Acknowledgement
I am grateful Heritage Institute of Technology, Kolkata for providing an
opportunity to undertake this project work. The project was an eye opener about
the applications of Chemical Engineering.
I express my profound gratitude to Prof. M. K. Das, our project co-coordinator,
who has rendered his kind help in every step of work in this project.
I am thankful to Prof. B. B. Paira, our honorable Director, for more information
and help on this subject.
I am also very helpful to Prof. B.R. Saha, our Head of the Department.
At last, our project would never have been completed without the joint team effort
of all the group members. So I am thankful to my partners Mr. Deepra
Bhattacharya and Mr. Kaushik Lakshman for this.
Siddhartha Sinha
Abstract
The vortex tube is a simple device, having no moving parts, which produces hot and cold air
streams simultaneously at its two ends from a source of compressed air. Literature review reveals
that there is no theory so perfect, which gives the satisfactory explanation of the vortex tube
phenomenon as explained by various researchers. Therefore, it was thought to carryout
experimental investigations to understand the heat transfer characteristics in a vortex tube with
respect to various parameters like mass flow rates of cold and hot air, nozzle area of inlet
compressed air, cold orifice area, hot end area of the tube, and L/DT ratio. The experimental
investigations were carried out based upon two designs, ie, maximum temperature drop tube
design and maximum cooling effect tube design. It is observed that the effect of nozzle design is
more important than the cold orifice design in getting higher temperature drops. Cold fractions as
well as adiabatic efficiency are more influenced by the size of the cold orifice rather than the size
of the nozzle. Higher temperature drops are obtained in vortex tube made of maximum
temperature drop tube design, whereas, more cold fraction and higher adiabatic efficiency are
obtained with maximum cooling effect tube design. Length of the tube has
no effect on the performance of the vortex tube in the range of 45 to 55 (L/DT ratio).
The phenomenon of noticeable temperature distribution in confined steady rotating gas flows is
referred as Ranque-Hilsch effect. The simple counter-flow Ranque-Hilsch tube consists of a long
hollow cylinder with tangential nozzles at one end for injecting compressed gas. Rotating gas
escapes the tube through two outlets – a central orifice diaphragm placed near the injection
nozzle plane (cold stream) and a ring shaped peripheral outlet placed at the opposite end of the
tube (hot stream). The flow is essentially three-dimensional, turbulent, compressible, and
spinning such that any theoretical simplifications are questionable, if at all possible.
Notations
AC , AH : areas of the cold orifice and at the hot end,
respectively, mm2
AN , AT : areas of the nozzle and the tube,
respectively, mm2
DC , DN , DT : diameters of the cold orifice, the nozzle and
the tube, respectively, mm
L : length of the tube, mm
mC , mH : mass flow rates of cold and hot air,
respectively, kg/s
mi : mass flow rate of air at inlet nozzle, kg/s
Ta : ambient temperature, oC
TC , TH : temperature of air at cold and hot ends,
respectively, oC
To : temperature of air inside the compressor
tank, oC
vC , vH : velocity of the air at cold orifice and at hot
end, respectively, m/s
DTC : temperature drop in vortex tube, oC
DTC¢ : temperature drop due to adiabatic
expansion, oC
rC ,rH : density of air at cold orifice and at hot end,
respectively, kg/m3
a1 : AN /AT
a2 : AC /AT
a3 : L/DT
a4 : hot end area/tube area, AH /AT
b1 : mC /mi
b2 : b1 ´ DTC / DTC¢
g : specific heat ratio
Introduction
The vortex tube also known as Hilsch or Ranque tube is a simple device having no
moving parts, which produces hot and cold air streams simultaneously at its two
ends from a source of compressed air. It consists of a long tube having a tangential
nozzle near one end and a conical valve at the other end, as shown schematically in
Figure 1. A diaphragm called cold orifice, with a suitable sized hole in its centre is
placed immediately to the left of the tangential inlet nozzle. The compressed air is
then introduced into the tube through this nozzle. The tangential flow imparts a
whirling or vortex motion to the inlet air, which subsequently spirals down the tube
to the right of the inlet nozzle. Conical valve at right end of the tube confines the
exiting air to regions near the outer wall and restricts it to the central portion of the
tube from making a direct exit. The central part of the air flows in reverse direction
and makes exit from the left end of the tube with sizeable temperature drop, thus
creating a cold stream. The outer part of the air near the wall of the tube
escapes through the right end of the tube and is found to have temperature higher
than that of inlet air. Literature review1-15 reveals that there is no theory so
perfect, which gives the satisfactory explanation of the vortex tube phenomenon as
explained by various researchers. Therefore,
it was thought to carryout experimental investigations for understanding the heat
transfer characteristics in a vortex tube. An attempt has been made to study the
effect of various parameters like mass flow rates of cold and hot air, nozzle area of
inlet compressed air, cold orifice area and hot end area of the tube. The study also
investigates the effect of L/DT ratio on the performance of the vortex tube.
Design and construction features
In general, there are two design features associated with a vortex tube, namely, (a) maximum
temperature drop vortex tube design for producing small quantity of air with very low
temperatures; and (b) maximum cooling effect vortex tube design for producing large quantity of
air with moderate temperatures. These two design considerations have been used in the present
study. The parameters investigated in the study, to understand their inter-relationships and their
effect on the
performance of the vortex tube, are: n nozzle diameter; n cold orifice diameter;
n mass flow rates of cold and hot air; n length of the tube; and n area at the hot end.
In the present investigation, a nozzle area to tube area ratio of 0.11 ± 0.01 for maximum
temperature drop and a ratio of 0.084 ± 0.001 for achieving maximum efficiency has been
considered, as suggested by Soni and Thomson9. Further, they suggested that the ratio of cold
orifice area to tube area should be 0.080 ± 0.001 for achieving maximum temperature drop and it
will be 0.145 ± 0.035 for attaining the maximum efficiency. Also, the same researchers
suggested that the length of the vortex tube should be greater than 45 times the tube diameter but
no upper limit was specified.
Keeping these suggestions in view, a vortex tube of size 15.30 mm diameter of PVC was
selected. The casing of the vortex tube was a 64 mm long CI cylinder. Two sets of nozzles were
made and each set consisted of two nozzles. The first set of nozzles had a 3.1 mm diameter hole
and was 40 mm long, whereas the second set nozzles had a 3.5 mm diameter hole and was 38
mm long. Similarly, two cold orifices were used having hole diameters of 4.5 mm and 5.8 mm,
respectively. A conical valve made of mild steel was provided on the right hand side of the tube
to regulate the flow. Also, a muffler was provided to reduce the noise levels at the hot end.
References
1. Ranque G. Expériences sur la détente giratoire
avec productions simultanées d'un énchappement
d'air chaud et d'un énchappement d'air froid. J.
de Physique el de la Radium 1933; 4. P.1125.
2. Hilsch R. The use of the expansion of gases in
a centrifugal field as a cooling process. The
Review of Scientific Instruments. 1947
February; 18(2). p.108.
3. Coccerill T. Thermodynamics and fluid
mechanics of a Ranque-Hilsch vortex tube.
Cambridge: University of Cambridge; 1998.
4. Deissler R, Permutter M. Analysis of the flow
and energy separation in a turbulent vortex.
International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer.
1960; 1. p.173
5. Kurosaka M. Acoustic streaming of swirling
flow. Journal of Fluid Mechanics. 1982
November; 124. p.139.
6. Gupta K, Lilly D, Syrod N. Swirl flows.
England: Abacus Press; 1984.
7. Gutsol A. The Ranque effect. Physics –Uspekhi. 1977; 40(6). p.639
8. Ranque G. Expériences sur la détente giratoire
avec productions simultanées d'un énchappement
d'air chaud et d'un énchappement d'air froid. J.
de Physique el de la Radium 1933; 4. P.1125.
9. Hilsch R. The use of the expansion of gases in
a centrifugal field as a cooling process. The
Review of Scientific Instruments. 1947
February; 18(2). p.108.
10. Coccerill T. Thermodynamics and fluid
mechanics of a Ranque-Hilsch vortex tube.
Cambridge: University of Cambridge; 1998.
11. Deissler R, Permutter M. Analysis of the flow
and energy separation in a turbulent vortex.
International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer.
1960; 1. p.173.
12. Kurosaka M. Acoustic streaming of swirling
flow. Journal of Fluid Mechanics. 1982
November; 124. p.139.
13. Gupta K, Lilly D, Syrod N. Swirl flows.
England: Abacus Press; 1984.
14. Gutsol A. The Ranque effect. Physics –
Uspekhi. 1977; 40(6). p.639