A Theoretical Model for Fluid-Elastic Instability in Heat Exchanger Tube Bundles

Abstract

A simple theoretical model has been developed from first principles for the fluid-elastic instability in heat exchanger tube bundles. A series of experiments were conducted to verify the basic assumption that only a single tube need be modeled in a flow channel which preserves the basic geometry of the array. The mechanism of instability is found to be one of flow redistribution due to tube motion and a phase lag resulting from fluid inertia. Quite good agreement is found with available experimental data for a parallel triangular array without the need for empirical fluid force coefficients. The model includes the effects of tube array pattern and pitch.