Performance and Optimization of Flat Plate Fins of Different Geometry on a Round Tube: A Comparative Investigation

Owing to a uniform thickness, the fin material of a flat plate fin near to the tip does not participate optimally in transferring heat. On account of this, two new fin geometries of flat plate fins are proposed for improving the heat transfer rate per unit volume. These projected fin geometries, namely flat plate fin circumscribing a circular tube by providing quarter circular cut at the corners of the tip (FQCT) and flat plate fin circumscribing a circular tube having circular arc to cut at the tip (FCAT) are suggested. The thermal performance of the said geometric fins has been determined by a semianalytical method. By using a rigorous semianalytical technique, optimization have been demonstrated in a generalized scheme either by maximizing the rate of heat duty for a given fin volume or by minimizing the fin volume for a given heat transfer duty. The optimization study has also been made with the additional length constraints imposed on one or both sides of the fluid carrying tube. Finally, it can be demonstrated from the optimization study that two proposed fins, namely FQCT and FCAT, can dissipate more rate of heat than the FCT with an identical fin volume and thermophysical parameters. It can also be highlighted that the optimum FQCT and FCAT can transfer heat at a higher rate in comparison with the annular disk fin when a space constraint exists.