Free Heat and Mass Transfer in a Porous Enclosure with Side Vents

Abstract

Free heat and mass transfer during drying in a porous enclosure with free vents has been investigated numerically. Enclosed moist air interacts with the surrounding air through freely vented ports situated on both sides perpendicular to the heated wall. Air, heat, and moisture transport structures are visualized respectively by streamlines, heat lines, and mass lines. Effects of thermal Rayleigh number, Darcy number, vent location, and enclosure inclination on the convective heat/moisture transfer rate and volume flow rate across this enclosure are discussed. For each case, partially enclosed fluid flow undergoes different phases, increasing with buoyancy ratio; that is, heat transfer–driven flow, heat- and moisture-aided flow, and moisture transfer–dominated flow. Numerical results demonstrate that the convective heat and moisture transport patterns and transport rates greatly depend on thermal Rayleigh number, properties of porous medium, and enclosure inclination. Practices for enhancing heat and moisture transfer have been suggested for drying processes.

Keywords:

• CFD
• Heat and mass transfer
• Porous media

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

This work was partially supported by the Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC No. 50578059). Financial support from the Hunan Provincial Innovation Foundation for Postgraduate is also appreciated.