CFD simulation of thermoacoustic cooling

In the field of thermoacoustic energy conversion, the application of numerical analysis techniques, specifically computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations, have gained ground in recent years. Previous efforts have focused on single thermoacoustic couples that were subjected to the thermoacoustic effect through an oscillatory boundary condition. CFD simulations of an entire thermoacoustic device are computationally expensive and few examples exist. The present work presents an extension of a simulation of a whole thermoacoustic engine that also includes a refrigeration stack. Through interaction of thermally generated sound waves, cooling of the working gas in this stack is demonstrated. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.