Experimental investigation of fluid motion in pulsating heat pipe

Abstract

In this research, operating characteristics and heat transfer phenomena in 2-turn pulsating heat pipe operating in a circulation mode were experimentally investigated. Temperature, pressure and high-speed flow visualization data were obtained with the variation of diameters (1.2 mm, 1.7 mm and 2.2 mm) and input powers. The overall pressure variation from start-up to steady state was measured using the pressure transmitters in the evaporator section. Heat transfer phenomena were investigated using homogeneous-equilibrium model. Thermodynamic state of two-phase mixture at the exit of evaporator is identified as a saturation state using obtained temperature and pressure data. The ratio of sensible heat to latent heat changed with the variation of diameters and input powers. It was found that each evaporator has a different ratio and latent heat was dominant in most experimental cases.