Friction and heat transfer coefficients in smooth and rough pipes with dilute polymer solutions

Measurements of friction and heat transfer coefficients were obtained with dilute polymer solutions flowing through electrically heated smooth and rough tubes. The polymer used was "Polyox WSR-301", and tests were performed at concentrations of 10 and 50 parts per million. The rough tubes contained a close-packed, granular type of surface with roughness-height-to-diameter ratios of 0.0138 and 0.0488 respectively. A Prandtl number range of 4.38 to 10.3 was investigated which was obtained by adjusting the bulk temperature of the solution. The Reynolds numbers in the experiments were varied from =10,000 (Pr= 10.3) to 250,000 (Pr= 4.38).

Friction reductions as high as 73% in smooth tubes and 83% in rough tubes were observed, accompanied by an even more drastic heat transfer reduction (as high as 84% in smooth tubes and 93% in rough tubes). The heat transfer coefficients with Polyox can be lower for a rough tube than for a smooth one.

The similarity rules previously developed for heat transfer with a Newtonian fluid were extended to dilute polymer solution pipe flows. A velocity profile similar to the one proposed by Deissler was taken as a model to interpret the friction and heat transfer data in smooth tubes. It was found that the observed results could be explained by assuming that the turbulent diffusivities are reduced in smooth tubes in the vicinity of the wall, which brings about a thickening of the viscous layer. A possible mechanism describing the effect of the polymer additive on rough pipe flow is also discussed.

Influence of vapor transport equilibration on the crystal quality and thermal-expansion coefficients of gamma-LiAlO2

gamma-LiAlO2 (LAO) single crystal has been grown by the Czochralski method. However, its quality was deteriorated due to lithium volatilization during the crystal growth. The full width at half maximum value drops from 116.9 to 44.2 arc sec after the LAO slice was treated by vapor transport equilibration at 1000, 1100, and 1200 degrees C/48 h in sequence. The treated slice shows higher optical transmission than the as-grown one in the measured wavelength range of 190-1900 nm, meanwhile, its absorption edge exhibits a blueshift. According to Raman spectra, the treated slice has homogeneous quality at different depths from surface to 0.01 mm. The expansion coefficient of the treated slice for a axis drops from 17.2398x10(-6)/degrees C to 16.5240x10(-6)/degrees C, and that for c axis drops from 10.7664x10(-6)/degrees C to 10.0786x10(-6)/degrees C.