Specify Heat Exchangers

Identify the inflow, outflow, inertial resistance, and viscous resistance of heat exchangers, which are modeled as a porous medium.

Heat exchanger parts are often located in the engine compartment and hidden by other parts, therefore it is advisable to isolate the relevant parts.
All other input parameters, like permeability direction, or the frame of the heat exchanger are defined automatically but can be modified via the property sheet of each individual heat exchanger.

Identify heat exchangers in the following ways:

  • Use the Identify Heat Exchanger tool.
    1. From the Setup ribbon, click the Identify Parts tool.


      Figure 1.
    2. From the secondary tool set, click the Heat Exchanger tool.


      Figure 2.
    3. In the Heat Exchangers dialog, select the desired heat exchanger.
    4. Specify the inflow component.
      1. From the Identify Heat Exchanger tool, click the In arrow.
      2. Select the corresponding component.


      Figure 3.
    5. Specify the outflow component.
      1. From the Identify Heat Exchanger tool, click the Out arrow.
      2. Select the corresponding component.


      Figure 4.

      In general the heat-exchanger is modeled as a rectangular volume. As soon as the inlet and outlet of the heat exchanger are defined, VWT automatically identifies the connecting wall between those two surface regions.

    6. Optional: Manually define the connecting wall.
      1. From the Identify Heat Exchanger tool, click the Wall icon.
      2. Select the corresponding component.


      Figure 5.
  • Right-click on a part in the modeling window or the Model Browser and select Identify As > Heat Exchanger Inlet/Outlet/Wall from the context menu.
  • Select a part in the modeling window or the Model Browser then change the Identify As field to Heat Exchanger Inlet/Outlet/Wall in the Property Editor.
Identified parts are marked in the Model Browser by corresponding icons for the heat exchanger wall, inflow, and outflow.
Tip:
  • Open the Property Editor and review the parameters associated with a particular heat exchanger by left-clicking on parts identified as a heat exchanger in the Model Browser.
  • Define additional heat exchangers by clicking in the Heat Exchangers dialog. This will increase an internal index to number all heat exchangers.
  • Use the right-click context menu in the Heat Exchangers dialog to delete and rename heat exchangers.