Second-law and experimental analysis of a cross-flow heat exchanger

This article presents a cross-flow plate-type heat exchanger that has been studied and manufactured in laboratory conditions because of its effective use in waste heat recovery systems. This new heat exchanger was tested with an applicable experimental setup, considering temperatures, velocity of the air, and the pressure losses occurring in the system. These variables were measured and the efficiency of the system was determined. The irreversibility of the heat exchanger was taken into consideration, while the design of the heat exchanger was such that the minimum entropy generation number was analyzed with respect to the second law of thermodynamics in the cross-flow heat exchanger. The minimum entropy generation number depends on the parameters called the optimum flow path length and dimensionless mass velocity. Variations of the entropy generation number with these parameters are analyzed. © 1999 Taylor & Francis Group, LLC