Influence of Tube Geometry and Spacing on Thermal Performance in Automobile Radiators
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.38032/scse.2025.3.151Keywords:
Automobile Radiators, Heat Transfer, Tube Geometry, Thermal Performance, Simulation, NTUAbstract
This study investigates the influence of tube geometry and spacing on the heat transfer performance of automobile radiators using MATLAB and Simulink simulations. Despite innovations in heat exchanger designs, the impact of practical geometries like circular and rectangular tubes on radiator efficiency remains underexplored. The study examines heat exchanger performance by comparing outlet temperatures for circular and rectangular tubes at inlet temperatures of 310 K to 360 K, and analyzing the effectiveness-NTU relationship, highlighting geometric and operational impacts on efficiency. The NTU method was used to predict fluid outlet temperatures and also validated the simulations. In the case of tube shaping, the rectangular tubes achieve outlet temperatures of 307–347 K, compared to 308–351 K for circular tubes. For tube spacing, circular tubes stabilize at 334 K (2–15 tubes), while rectangular tubes drop to 323 K (up to 140 tubes) but rise to 340 K at 198 tubes due to flow limitations. The effectiveness of rectangular tubes rises sharply to 0.75 at NTU of 1, approaching 1 with minimal gains beyond NTU of 5. The NTU method predicts outlet temperatures of 309 to 359K, closely matching circular tubes but overestimating rectangular performance. This research identifies optimal tube configurations, contributing to improved thermal management. The findings have applications in automotive cooling systems, with future studies recommended for transient behavior analysis.
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Copyright (c) 2025 Jyotirmoy Mondal, Dipayan Mondal, Mohammad Sultan Mahmud (Author)
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