• Korean Journal of Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration Engineering
• /
• v.14 no.6
• /
• pp.519-524
• /
• 2002

An experimental study has been conducted to investigate the effects of surface energy on frost formation. Test samples with two different surfaces are installed in a wind tunnel and exposed to a humid airflow. Dynamic contact angles (DCA) for these surfaces are $23^{\circ}\;and\;88^{\circ}$, respectively. The thickness and the mass of frost layer are measured and used to calculate the frost density while frost formation is visualized simultaneously with their measurements. Results show that frost density increases as time increases at specific test conditions. The air Reynolds number, the airflow humidity and the cold plate temperature are maintained at 12,000, 0.0042 kg/kg and $-21^{\circ}C$, respectively. The surface with a lower DCA shows a higher frost density during two-hour test, but no differences in the frost density have been found after two hours of frost generation. Empirical correlations for thickness, mass and density are assumed to be the functions of the test time and DCA.

• Proceedings of the KSME Conference
• /
• 2004.04a
• /
• pp.1546-1551
• /
• 2004

This paper presents a mathematical model to predict the frost properties and heal and mass transfer within the frost layer formed on a cold plate. The laminar flow equations for the air-side are analyzed. and the empirical correlations of local frost properties are employed in order to predict the frost layer growth. The correlations of local frost density and effective thermal conductivity of frost layer, obtained from various experimental conditions, are derived as functions of various frosting parameters (Reynolds number, frost surface temperature, absolute humidity and temperature of moist air, cooling plate temperature, and frost density). The numerical results are compared with experimental data and the results of various models to validate the present model, and agree well with experimental data within a maximum error of 10%. The heat and mass transfer coefficients obtained from the numerical analyses are presented, as the results, it is found that the model for frost growth using the correlation of heat transfer coefficient without solving air flow have a limitation in its application.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers B
• /
• v.26 no.9
• /
• pp.1325-1331
• /
• 2002

This study presents a numerical model to predict the behavior of frost layer growth. The characteristics of the heat and mass transfer inside the frost layer are analyzed by coupling the air flow with the frost layer. The present model is validated by comparing with the several other analytical models. It has been known that most of the previous models cause considerable errors depending on the working conditions or correlations used in predicting the frost thickness growth, whereas the model in this work estimates the thickness of the frost layer more accurately within an error of 10% in comparison with the experimental data. Simulation results are presented for variations of heat and mass transfer during the frost formation and for the behavior of frost layer growth along the direction of air flow.

• Proceedings of the SAREK Conference
• /
• 2009.06a
• /
• pp.804-809
• /
• 2009

The present study measured frost pattern on a cylinder to propose empirical correlation equations for the local and average frost thickness, frost density and frost mass. The key parameters were diameter of the cylinders (7mm, 20mm), cooling surface temperature of the circular tube, absolute humidity of air, air temperature and air velocity. A 50% ethylene glycol aqueous solution was applied as a coolant. The frost thicknesses at both front and rear were larger than those at the other parts, while they were increased as diameter of the cylinder was increased. The local frost thicknesses at high air velocity were more uniform than those at low air velocity. The values predicted by Kim et al. under the freezer condition showed larger by the maximum of $30{\sim}50%$ than the measured data under heat pump condition. The empirical correlations for the local and average frost thickness and frost mass were proposed. The correlation equations for the frost thickness and frost mass under the heat pump condition in the present study might predict more accurate than the other correlation equations. The proposed correlations might be applied for the freezer condition within the maximum 15% deviation from the previous correlations under freezer condition.

• Korean Journal of Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration Engineering
• /
• v.6 no.2
• /
• pp.155-165
• /
• 1994

In this study, the following factors are investigated from experiments for a vertical parallel plate heat exchanger under the frosting condition ; the growth of frost layer, the characteristics of heat and mass transfer, the change of mass flow rate of the air passing through the heat exchanger, and the pressure drop of the air in the heat exchanger. The amount of heat and mass flux of water vapor transferred from the air stream to the heat exchanger surface is large at the early stage of frosting and then decreases dramatically, and the extent of decreasing rate becomes moderate with time. The frost layer formed near the inlet of the heat exchanger is thicker and denser than that formed near the outlet. It is found that the gradient of the amount of frost along the flow direction increases with time. In the early period of frost formation, the thermal resistance between the air and the cooling plate increases dramatically and then the extent of change decreases with time. Initially the convective thermal resistance is dominant. Then, while the convective thermal resistance decreases with time, the conductive thermal resistance continues to increase with time and finally the conductive thermal resistance becomes dominant.

• Korean Journal of Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration Engineering
• /
• v.8 no.2
• /
• pp.299-306
• /
• 1996

This work presents an analytical model, so called modified LMTD method, to predict the thermal performance of finned-tube heat exchanger under frosting conditions. In this model, the total heat transfer coefficient and effective thermal conductivity of the frost layer were defined as a function of frost surface temperature. The surface temperature of the frost layer formed on the heat exchanger was calculated through the analysis of the heat and mass transfer process in the air and frost layer. To examine the validity of this analytical model, the computed results from the present model, such as heat transfer rate, frost mass and thickness of frost, were compared with the ones of the expermental work and LMED method.

• Korean Journal of Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration Engineering
• /
• v.8 no.4
• /
• pp.537-549
• /
• 1996

A numerical study of heat and mass transfer has been carried out for a frost formation process on a circular cylinder in a cross flow including the effect of buoyancy. Studies include cases of low and high Reynolds number flows. The effect of normal velocity at the surface which is produced due to mass transfer was included in the analysis as well as heat transfer contribution generated due to mass transfer. Variations of heat transfer and frost growth both in time and in the circumferential direction have been obtained for various buoyancy parameters. The effect of flow directions(identical or opposite directions to the gravity) has been studied to yield different frost growth. Our results have been compared with existing experimental data and are in good agreement. Buoyancy analyses for a high Reynolds number flow agree with full numerical solutions for the case of having the same flow direction as gravity. However, for the opposite direction case, the boundary layer analyses would not be applicable to predict frost growth except the region near the stagnation point.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Industry Convergence
• /
• v.11 no.4
• /
• pp.157-163
• /
• 2008

The present study investigated the pressure drop and the total frost mass of the louvered fin type heat exchanger, which is widely used at the air-conditioning system. The pressure drop due to the frosting phenomenon and the total frost mass were investigated by changing the wet bulb temperature condition of the inlet air. Hence the brain of 55wt% was used as a cooling solution instead of a common refrigerant. The temperature difference between the brine and the tube outside wall at the outlet of heat exchanger was $10^{\circ}C$, at maximum, higher than that at the inlet of heat exchanger. As the wet bulb temperatures were increased, the pressure drop was linearly increased due to the increment of frost mass. And the increment of heat exchange rate was smaller than that of inlet air enthalpy due to the increment of frost mass. The pressure drop of air side was rapidly increased due to the progress of frosting phenomena. The run time that the pressure drop occurred rapidly was decreased by the growth of frost.

• Korean Journal of Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration Engineering
• /
• v.9 no.2
• /
• pp.249-258
• /
• 1997

In this study, a numerical model for analyzing frost formation phenomena on a cold flat plate has been developed. Both regions of air flow and frost layer have been coupled to calculate the amount of the heat and mass transfer between air flow and frost layer. Experiments have been also conducted to validate the numerical model. The present numerical results show a good agreement with the experimental data. The present numerical model also provides some useful data such as the temperature distribution inside the frost layer which could not be obtained through the experiments.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers B
• /
• v.27 no.8
• /
• pp.1114-1121
• /
• 2003

A mathematical model considering the air side and the frost layer is presented to predict the frost layer growth. The standard k-$\varepsilon$ model for the air flow and the diffusion and energy equations for the frost layer are employed. The numerical results are compared with experimental data to validate the present model, and agree well with experimental data within a maximum error of 10%. The present model predicts well the frost properties and heat and mass transfer with respect to the frosting time. The variation of total heat transfer strongly depends on the operating condition, and has a similar trend to that of the sensible heat transfer. The frost properties along the flow direction are also investigated.