ON THE DESIGN AND OPTIMIZATION OF CONSTRUCTAL NETWORKS OF HEAT EXCHANGERS BY CONSIDERING ENTROPY GENERATION MINIMIZATION AND THERMOECONOMICS

This study aims to integrate in constructal networks of heat exchangers (HEXs) two ways of optimization: entropy generation minimization and thermoeconomics. We obtained a complete (non-simplified) analytic solution of the entropy generation along of the HEX that allows exact evaluation of the irreversible processes in smooth or augmented tubes. By using this analytic solution, we proposed an adapted augmentation entropy generation number and compared it with Bejan's original formulation. We developed a thermoeconomic model of a HEX for periods of operation of 1 to 10 years, for which we obtained specific optimum points of cost. Representing the cost versus entropy generation opens the path for future advanced comparisons of complementary objectives that may conduct to balanced designs: thermal process optimum vs economical optimum. We outlined a new methodology of analysis of the constructal tree networks based on the network laws and thermo-hydro-electric analogy. The proposed methodology is characterized by compactness, a higher degree of abstraction of the problem and allows further generalizations, making it suitable for advanced objectives like optimization, irreversibility analysis, sensitivity analysis or inverse problems.