Heat transfers in tubes fitted with single, twin, and triple twisted tapes

This experimental study performs heat transfer and pressure drop measurements in three test tubes fitted with single, twin, and triple twisted-tapes with Reynolds number (Re) varying from 1,500 to 14,000. Each element of these continuous twisted-tapes that formulates the single, twin, and triple twisted-tapes has identical width, pitch, and thickness. Heat-transfer augmentations from the plain-tube conditions in three test tubes decrease with the increase of Re while the descending rate decreases with the increase of twisted-tape in the tube. These twisted-tapes generate the more effective heat transfer enhancements in laminar flow regime than those developed in turbulent flow regime. With 3,000 <= Re < 14,000, the local Nusselt numbers in the tubes fitted with single, twin, and triple twisted-tapes were, respectively, 1.5-2.3, 1.98-2.8, and 2.86-3.76 times of the Dittus-Boelter levels. The Fanning friction factors in three test tubes decrease with the increase of Reynolds number. Based on the same pumping power consumption, the tube fitted with single and triple twisted-tapes possess the highest performance factors for laminar and turbulent flows, respectively. Experimental correlations of heat transfer and Fanning friction factor were derived for three tubes fitted with single, twin, and triple twisted-tapes.