Heat Transfer and Entropy Generation Analyses of Forced Convection Through Porous Media Using Pore Scale Modeling

Abstract

The objective of the current investigation is to investigate the entropy generation inside porous media utilizing a pore scale modeling approach. The current investigation improves the thermodynamics performance of the recent analysis (Int. J. Heat Mass Transfer, 2016, 99, pp. 303–316) by considering different cross-sectional configurations and analyzing the thermal system for various Reynolds numbers, porosities, and a comparison between the previous and current investigation. The Nusselt number, the dimensionless volume-averaged entropy generation rate, Bejan number, and performance evaluation criterion (PEC) are all presented and discussed. The dimensionless volume-averaged entropy generation rate was found to increase with increasing Reynolds number, with the increase being higher for lower porosity medium. A slight variation of the dimensionless volume-averaged entropy generation rate is observed for higher Reynolds numbers which is confirmed for both cross-sectional configurations. Examination of the Bejan number demonstrates heat transfer irreversibility (HTI) dominance for most of the Reynolds number ranges examined. The results indicate that the longitudinal elliptical cross-sectional configuration with porosity equals to 0.53 provides superior performance when applying the performance evaluation criterion utilized.