Application of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) methods to analyze energy efficiency of indirect evaporative coolers

This paper proposes a method based on computational fluid dynamics to determine pressure drop and air dis-tribution characteristics in recuperative exchangers. The numerical calculations were performed for a repre-sentative counter-flow heat exchanger with a relatively complex structure, providing a large heat exchange surface. To verify a proposed method, the empirical calculations based on known analytical solutions for straight channels with various shapes of cross-sections were also performed. Numerical and empirical calculations were compared with certified data obtained according to standards EN 308: 1997 standards. The verification showed that the numerical methods properly predict the pressure drop in operating parameters of the exchanger, within the uncertainty of experimental data. The empirical methods calculation accuracy strongly depends on the as-sumptions made before.

Automated summary

This paper proposes a computational fluid dynamics-based method to determine pressure drop and air distribution characteristics in recuperative exchangers. Numerical calculations were performed on a counter-flow heat exchanger with a complex structure, and empirical calculations were also conducted for comparison. The results showed that the numerical method accurately predicted pressure drop within the uncertainty of experimental data, while the accuracy of the empirical method depended on the assumptions made.