Engineering Design and Optimization of Thermofluid Systems

A practical and accessible introductory textbook that enables engineering students to design and optimize typical thermofluid systems

Engineering Design and Optimization of Thermofluid Systems is designed to help students and professionals alike understand the design and optimization techniques used to create complex engineering systems that incorporate heat transfer, thermodynamics, fluid dynamics, and mass transfer. Designed for thermal systems design courses, this comprehensive textbook covers thermofluid theory, practical applications, and established techniques for improved performance, efficiency, and economy of thermofluid systems. Students gain a solid understanding of best practices for the design of pumps, compressors, heat exchangers, HVAC systems, power generation systems, and more.

Covering the material using a pragmatic, student-friendly approach, the text begins by introducing design, optimization, and engineering economics—with emphasis on the importance of engineering optimization in maximizing efficiency and minimizing cost. Subsequent chapters review representative thermofluid systems and devices and discuss basic mathematical models for describing thermofluid systems. Moving on to system simulation, students work with the classical calculus method, the Lagrange multiplier, canonical search methods, and geometric programming. Throughout the text, examples and practice problems integrate emerging industry technologies to show students how key concepts are applied in the real world. This well-balanced textbook:

• Integrates underlying thermofluid principles, the fundamentals of engineering design, and a variety of optimization methods
• Covers optimization techniques alongside thermofluid system theory
• Provides readers best practices to follow on-the-job when designing thermofluid systems Contains numerous tables, figures, examples, and problem sets

Emphasizing optimization techniques more than any other thermofluid system textbook available, Engineering Design and Optimization of Thermofluid Systems is the ideal textbook for upper-level undergraduate and graduate students and instructors in thermal systems design courses, and a valuable reference for professional mechanical engineers and researchers in the field.

David S.K. Ting is a Professor of Mechanical, Automotive, and Materials Engineering at the University of Windsor, Ontario, Canada. He has taught over a dozen courses at UWindsor and is the founder of its Turbulence and Energy Laboratory. He has co-authored over 140 journal papers, authored 3 textbooks and co-edited 10 volumes, is affiliated with ASHRAE, ASME, and SAE, and was named the 2018 Best Reviewer of the Year by ASME’s Heat Transfer Division. 

Preface xi

Acknowledgments xiii

1 Introduction 1

1.1 What Are Design and Optimization of Thermofluid Systems? 1

1.2 Differentiating Engineering from Science 3

1.3 Development, Design, and Analysis 5

1.4 The Design Process 6

1.5 Existing Books on Thermofluid System Design and/or Optimization 9

1.6 Organization of the Book 10

Problems 10

References 12

2 Engineering Economics 14

2.1 Introduction 15

2.2 Worth of Money with Respect to Time 15

2.2.1 Compound Interest and Effective Interest 17

2.2.2 PresentWorth Factor 19

2.3 Money Flow Series 20

2.3.1 Cash Flow Diagram 20

2.3.2 Rate of Return, Benefit-Cost Ratio, and Capital Recovery Factor 25

2.4 Thermo-economics 29

Problems 29

References 30

3 Common Thermofluid Devices 32

3.1 Common Components of Thermofluid Systems 33

3.2 Valves 34

3.2.1 Ball Valves 34

3.2.2 Butterfly Valves 35

3.2.3 Gate Valves 35

3.2.4 Globe Valves 35

3.2.5 Needle Valves 37

3.2.6 Pinch Valves 38

3.2.7 Plug Valves 38

3.2.8 Poppet Valves 39

3.2.9 Saddle Valves 39

3.2.10 Some Comments on Valves 40

3.3 Ducts, Pipes, and Fittings 40

3.3.1 Laminar and Turbulent Flow 40

3.3.2 Entrance to Fully Developed Pipe Flow 42

3.3.3 Friction of Fully-Developed Pipe Flow 44

3.3.4 Head Loss along a Pipe Section 47

3.3.5 Minor Head Loss 50

3.4 Piping Network 52

Problems 54

References 55

4 Heat Exchangers 56

4.1 Effective Exchange of Thermal Energy 57

4.2 Types of Heat Exchangers 59

4.3 Indirect-Contact Heat Exchangers 60

4.3.1 A Single Fluid in a Conduit of Constant Temperature 60

4.3.2 Heat Transfer from a Hot Stream to a Cold Stream 64

4.3.3 Log Mean Temperature Difference 66

4.3.4 Correction Factor 69

4.4 Comments on Heat Exchanger Selection 71

Problems 73

References 74

5 Equations 75

5.1 Introduction 76

5.1.1 Model Versus Simulation 77

5.1.2 Simulation 79

5.2 Types of Models 80

5.2.1 Analog Models 81

5.2.2 Mathematical Models 84

5.2.3 Numerical Models 84

5.2.4 Physical Models 85

5.3 Forms of Mathematical Models 85

5.4 Curve Fitting 86

5.4.1 Least Error Linear Fits 86

5.4.2 Least Error Polynomial Fits 89

5.4.3 Non-Polynomial into Polynomial Functions 92

5.4.4 Multiple Independent Variables 93

Problems 94

References 95

6 Thermofluid System Simulation 96

6.1 What is System Simulation? 97

6.2 Information-Flow Diagram 98

6.3 Solving a Set of Equations via the Matrix Approach 100

6.4 Sequential versus Simultaneous Calculations 106

6.5 Successive Substitution 106

6.6 Taylor Series Expansion and the Newton-Raphson Method 113

6.6.1 Taylor Series Expansion 113

6.6.2 The Newton-Raphson Method 116

Problems 122

References 124

7 Formulating the Problem for Optimization 125

7.1 Introduction 126

7.2 Objective Function and Constraints 127

7.3 Formulating a Problem to Optimize 128

Problems 139

References 142

8 Calculus Approach 144

8.1 Introduction 145

8.2 Lagrange Multiplier 146

8.3 Unconstrained, Multi-Variable, Objective Function 148

8.4 Multi-Variable Objective Function with Equality Constraints 151

8.5 Significance of the Lagrange Multiplier Operation 155

8.6 The Lagrange Multiplier as a Sensitivity Coefficient 161

8.7 Dealing with Inequality Constraints 163

Problems 164

References 166

9 Search Methods 167

9.1 Introduction 168

9.2 Elimination Methods 169

9.2.1 Exhaustive Search 169

9.2.2 Dichotomous Search 172

9.2.3 Fibonacci Search 175

9.2.4 Golden Section Search 178

9.2.5 Comparison of Elimination Methods 181

9.3 Multi-variable, Unconstrained Optimization 181

9.3.1 Exhaustive Search 181

9.3.2 Lattice Search 183

9.3.3 Univariate Search 185

9.3.4 Steepest Ascent/Descent Method 187

9.4 Multi-variable, Constrained Optimization 193

9.4.1 Penalty Function Method 193

9.4.2 Search-Along-a-Constraint (Hemstitching) Method 196

Problems 205

References 207

10 Geometric Programming 208

10.1 Common Types of Programming 209

10.2 What is Geometric Programming? 210

10.3 Single-Variable, Unconstrained Geometric Programming 210

10.4 Multi-Variable, Unconstrained Geometric Programming 215

10.5 Constrained Multi-Variable Geometric Programming 218

10.6 Conclusion 225

Problems 226

References 227

Appendix: Sample Design and Optimization Projects 228

A.1 Introduction 229

A.2 Cavern-based Compressed Air Energy Storage 229

A.3 Underwater Compressed Air Energy Storage 233

A.4 Compressed Air Energy Storage Underground 235

A.5 Geothermal Heat Exchanger 235

A.6 Passive Cooling of a Photovoltaic Panel for Efficiency 237

A.7 Desert Expedition 238

A.8 Fire- and Heat-Resilient Designs 240

References 241

Index 243

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