Thermal Modeling of Unlooped and Looped Pulsating Heat Pipes

Abstract

Analytical models for both unlooped and looped Pulsating Heat Pipes (PHPs) with multiple liquid slugs and vapor plugs are presented in this study. The governing equations are solved using an explicit finite difference scheme to predict the behavior of vapor plugs and liquid slugs. The results show that the effect of gravity on the performance of top heat mode unlooped PHP is insignificant. The effects of diameter, charge ratio, and heating wall temperature on the performance of looped and unlooped PHPs are also investigated. The results also show that heat transfer in both looped and unlooped PHPs is due mainly to the exchange of sensible heat.