Experimental study on the heat transfer

characteristics of a low melting point salt in a

parabolic trough solar collector system
Wu, Yu-ting; Liu, Shan-wei; Xiong, Ya-xuan; Ma, Chong-fang; Ding, Yulong

DOI:
10.1016/j.applthermaleng.2015.06.054
License:
Creative Commons: Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs (CC BY-NC-ND)

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Citation for published version (Harvard):

Wu, Y, Liu, S, Xiong, Y, Ma, C & Ding, Y 2015, 'Experimental study on the heat transfer characteristics of a low
melting point salt in a parabolic trough solar collector system' Applied Thermal Engineering, vol 89, pp. 748-754.
DOI: 10.1016/j.applthermaleng.2015.06.054

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Accepted Manuscript

Experimental Study on the Heat Transfer Characteristics of a Low Melting Point Salt
in a Parabolic Trough Solar Collector System

Yu-Ting Wu, Shan-Wei Liu, Ya-Xuan Xiong, Chong-Fang Ma, Yu-Long Ding

PII: S1359-4311(15)00612-2
DOI: 10.1016/j.applthermaleng.2015.06.054
Reference: ATE 6746

To appear in: Applied Thermal Engineering

Received Date: 10 January 2015

Revised Date: 6 June 2015
Accepted Date: 13 June 2015

Please cite this article as: Y.-T. Wu, S.-W. Liu, Y.-X. Xiong, C.-F. Ma, Y.-L. Ding, Experimental Study
on the Heat Transfer Characteristics of a Low Melting Point Salt in a Parabolic Trough Solar Collector
System, Applied Thermal Engineering (2015), doi: 10.1016/j.applthermaleng.2015.06.054.

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 ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT

1 Experimental Study on the Heat Transfer Characteristics of

2 a Low Melting Point Salt in a Parabolic Trough Solar
3 Collector System
4 Yu-Ting Wu1, Shan-Wei Liu1, Ya-Xuan Xiong2, Chong-Fang Ma1, Yu-Long Ding3
1
5 Key Laboratory of Enhanced Heat Transfer and Energy Conservation, Ministry of Education and Key

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6 Laboratory of Heat Transfer and Energy Conversion, Beijing municipality, Beijing University of Technology,
7 Beijing 100124, China.

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2
8 Key lab of HVAC, Beijing University of Civil Engineering and Architecture，100044, China.

3
9 School of Chemical Engineering/Birmingham Centre of Cryogenic Energy Storage, University of
10

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Birmingham, B152TT United Kingdom.

11 Abstract：

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12 An experimental system of parabolic trough solar collector and heat transfer was set up with a new
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13 molten salt employed as the heat transfer medium (with a melting point of 86℃ and a working

14 temperature upper limit of 550℃). The circulation of molten salts in the system took place over 1,000
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15 hrs. Experiments were conducted to obtain the heat loss of the Heat Collector Element (HCE), the total
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16 heat transfer coefficient of the water-to-salt heat exchanger, and the convective heat transfer
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17 coefficients for the low melting point molten salt in a circular tube. The results show that the thermal

18 loss of the tested HCE is higher than that of the PTR70, and the thermal loss at the joints of the
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19 collector tube represents about 5% of the total loss in the entire tube. The total heat transfer coefficient
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20 of the water-to-salt heat exchanger was between 600 and 1200 W/(m2·k) in the ranges of
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21 10,000<Re<21,000 and 9.5<Pr<12.2. The experimental data show good agreement with existing

22 well-known correlations presented by the Sieder-Tate equation and the Gnielinski equation. This

23 experimental study on heat loss from molten salt flow in a receiver tube will hopefully serve as a

24 helpful reference for applications in parabolic trough systems.

25
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26 Corresponding author. Tel.: +86-10-67391985-8323; Fax: +86-10-67392774

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27 E-mail address: wuyuting1970@126.com (Yu-Ting Wu)

28 Keywords: low melting point molten salt; trough solar collector system; heat loss; heat transfer

29 coefficient

30 1. Introduction

31

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Nowadays, concentrated solar power (CSP) presents tremendous potential for the large-scale

32 deployment of clean renewable energy [1], and it has been proven to be the most mature solar thermal

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33 technology available. As a result, most construction projects for commercial solar thermal power plants

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34 are currently based on this type of collector [2-4]. Many different kinds of working fluids are used in

35 CSP systems [5-7], and selecting the appropriate heat transfer fluid and storage medium is a key

36
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technological issue for the future success of CSP technology. Molten salt represents an extremely
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37 promising medium for heat transfer and storage in CSP plants; its advantages include a wide working
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38 temperature range, low vapor pressure, large heat capacity, low viscosity, good chemical stability, and

39 low cost [8-11]. Molten salt CSP storage was shown to be commercially viable in 2008, when the
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40 50MWe Andasol-1 plant with 7.5 hours of molten salt storage began its operation [12]. However, the
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41 only CSP system that uses molten salt as the medium of heat transfer is the Archimede parabolic trough
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42 plant in Italy. In the Archimede system, the working fluid of the heat transfer and heat storage is solar

43 salt that is a mixture of NaNO3 and KNO3 [13] with a high melting point(220℃). In such systems, the
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44 cost of operation will rise dramatically if there is an unexpected drop in temperature in the operating

45 process in which the salt is used as the heat transfer fluid. Therefore, additional hard-ware must be

46 installed, such as heat tracing, insulation, or emergency water-dilution systems. The high melting point

47 is a major disadvantage of conventional molten salts and limits their application in trough CSP systems

48 [3].

49 Based on different mixing ratios of KNO3–NaNO3–LiNO3–Ca (NO3)2.4H2O, a new kind of

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50 nitrate salt was developed by our research group. Experimental results have shown that the melting

51 point of this molten salt can be as low as 86℃ with a decomposition temperature above 600℃ [14].

52 Previous experiments have been carried out to obtain the convective heat transfer coefficients of the

53 turbulent flow and transition flows of Hitec salts, LiNO3, and fluoride salts in a circular tube [15-20].

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54 However, heat transfer performance using a low melting point salt has not been reported in the

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55 literature.

56 A parabolic trough solar collector and heat transfer system was constructed at the end of 2011 with

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57 a low melting point molten salt [14]. Since then, numerous engineering issues have been addressed,

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58 such as the plugging of solidified molten salt, charging and discharging methods, equipment selection,
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59 and thermal and flow parameter measurements. A series of experiments on low melting point molten

60 salt were conducted in the trough solar collector and heat transfer system, and the results of the
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61 experiments are reported in this paper. The heat loss of the HCE and the convective heat transfer
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62 coefficients of turbulent flows were obtained in a circular tube, and the total heat transfer coefficient of
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63 the water-to-salt heat exchanger was obtained as well.

64 2. Description of experimental system and working fluids

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65 2.1 Experimental apparatus

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66 A schematic diagram of the experimental system is shown in Fig. 1. The system contains molten
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67 salt circulation and water circulation. The main parts of the two cycles include a molten salt tank, a

68 high-temperature molten salt pump, a molten salt heater, a concentrating collector, a water-to-salt heat

69 exchanger, a water cooler, a water heater, a mass flow meter, and a water pump. The characteristics of

70 the collector are presented in Table 1.

71 In order to avoid molten salt solidification in the tube, an automatic electric tracing band is utilized

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72 in the pipe system, the latter of which requires a certain lean of about 5‰. Due to the inherent

73 properties of molten salts and the high temperature, most devices cannot effectively measure the

74 molten salt flow. In order to measure the molten salt flow rates, many different types of flow meters

75 were tested, such as target flow meters, mass flow meters, float flow meters, etc. Through comparative

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76 analysis, an ultrasonic flowmeter made by FLEXIM (Germany) was chosen to measure the flow rates

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77 of the molten salt, and a mass flow meter was installed in the water cycle. Meanwhile, the temperature

78 of the molten salt was measured by a type K thermocouple with special limits of error(±1.1℃ or

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79 ±0.4% of the tested temperature, whichever is greater), and the temperature in the water cycle was

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80 measured with a PT100 resistance thermometer with an accuracy of 0.2℃. To obtain different flow
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81 rates of the molten salt, a frequency converter was installed to control the molten salt pump. Before the

82 molten salt was pumped from the storage tank to the pipeline, the entire molten salt flow loop had to
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83 warm up. When the molten salt in the storage tank was heated to a prescribed temperature by an
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84 electric heater, the molten salt pump started to circulate the molten salt in the salt cycle.
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85 2.2 Working fluids

86 A new kind of low melting point molten salt prepared by our lab [14] with a melting point of 86℃
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87 and a working temperature upper limit of 550℃ was chosen as the working fluid in this experimental
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88 investigation. Its main thermophysical properties are listed in Table 2.

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89 3. Results and discussion

90 3.1 Thermal loss of the HCE

91 In this parabolic trough solar system, the tested HCE features six evacuated collector tubes (each

92 with a length of 2 m) welded together. Insulation with a length of 1.15m and a thickness of 40mm was

93 adopted for proper heat preservation at the joints, including the bellows and the welding. The thermal

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94 loss of molten salt through the HCE can be calculated by the following equation:

95 qloss = mc
& p (ti − t0 ) (1)

96 where the thermal characteristic of the terminal through convection can be calculated as

97 qc = hA(tw − t∞ ) (2)

98 and

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λ
99 h = Nu (3)
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100 When wind speed V≤0.1m/s, Nu can be expressed as follows [21]:

2
 
 0.387 Ra1/6 

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101 Nu = 0.6 +  (4)
9/16 8/27
 1 + (0.559 / Pr)  


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102 Once V＞0.1m/s, Nu is given as follows [21]:
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103 Nu = C Rem Pr n (5)

104 where Pr≤10，n=0.37；Pr＞0.36，n=0.36. The values of C and m are listed in Table 3.

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105 The thermal loss of the joints through radiation can be obtained as
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106 Q rad = Aσε (t w 4 − t∞ 4 ) (6)

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107 In order to eliminate the influence of sunlight, the experiments were carried out at night, and the
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108 maximum wind speed was less than 3 m/s. Fig. 2 shows the measured thermal heat loss through the

109 HCE at different average fluid temperatures above the ambient air temperature. The results show that
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110 the thermal loss at the joints represents about 5% of the total thermal loss in the entire collector tube.
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111 However, it would reach 18% or so without any thermal insulation [22].

112 A comparison was also made between the present results and the data for a PTR70 receiver

113 obtained in the same way but using oil as working fluid [23]. As shown in Fig. 3, the heat loss of the

114 tested HCE is higher than that of the PTR70. One reason may be that the tested HCE had been

115 operating at a high temperature (300℃~500℃) for two years, which may have damaged its coating to

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116 some degree.

117 3.2 Turbulent convective heat transfer with molten salt in a circular pipe

118 A type of double-pipe heat-exchanger was used in the experimental system, in which the

119 high-temperature molten salt flowing inside the inner tube was cooled by low-temperature water

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120 flowing in the outer tube, as shown in Fig. 4. The diameter and thickness of the outer tube are 57mm

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121 and 3.5mm, respectively, while those of the inner tube are 32mm and 2mm, respectively; both tubes are

122 1,200mm long. The outer tube’s surface was wrapped with insulation materials to minimize heat loss.

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123 By measuring the temperature at four points (i.e., water inlet, water outlet, molten salt inlet, and molten

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124 salt outlet) and calculating the heat loss of the tube, we were able to obtain the overall heat transfer
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125 coefficient from molten salt to water in the tested section.

126 The data processing method adopted in this experiment can be found in our previous work [15] on
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127 turbulent convective heat transfer coefficients of lithium nitrate in a circular tube. Using the same
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128 least-square methods, the overall heat transfer coefficients and the correlations were calculated for the
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129 convective heat transfer coefficients of low melting molten salts. Through analysis and derivation, we

130 obtained the Nusselt number as follows:

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131 Nu=0.0239Re0.804Pr0.33 (7)

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132 Fig.5 shows that the total heat transfer coefficients increase within the a range of 600 to 1200
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133 W/(m2·k1) as the molten salt temperature increases within a range of 14,000<Re<32,000. Fig. 6

134 illustrates the good agreement between the curve predicted by Eq. (7) and the experimental data, with a

135 deviation of only ±7%; Eq. (7) is based on experimental data with Prandtl numbers ranging from 9.5 to

136 12.2. In order to verify the applicability of well-known convective heat transfer correlations in molten

137 salts, five kinds of molten salts were identified from the literature [15-20] in ranges of 1.6<Pr<15.3 and

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138 10,000<Nu<46,130. Figs. 7-9 show the comparisons between the present experimental results and the

139 existing data for various equations.

140 From these figures, it can be seen that there is a relatively high deviation between experimental

141 data from Kirst et al. [17] and the Dittus-Boelter equation, the Sieder-Tate equation [24], and the

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142 Gnielinski equation [25]. However, significant portions of the experimental data are quite consistent

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143 with the existing correlations. The maximum deviation between the present experimental results and

144 the curves predicted by the Dittus-Boelter equation, Sieder-Tate equation [24], and Gnielinski equation

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145 [25] reach +23%, -10%, and -20% respectively. It is worth noting that the Sieder-Tate equation and the

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146 Gnielinski equation include property ratio correction terms and consider the effect of variable fluid
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147 properties, while the effect of thermo-physical property variation is not included in the Dittus-Boelter

148 equation. In comparison, the present experimental results involve significant variation in the properties
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149 of molten salt. For example, when the temperature of the side wall of the molten salt is 175℃, its bulk
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150 temperature is 286℃, and the corresponding dynamic viscosity values are 4.83mPa·s and 3.34mPa·s
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151 respectively. This will yield distorted velocity and temperature fields, resulting in considerable changes

152 in heat transfer performance compared to the case of constant properties. The good agreement between
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153 the present data and well-known turbulent convection correlations, including the Sieder-Tate equation
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154 and the Gnielinski equation, demonstrates the superior reliability of low melting point molten salts.
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155 To highlight the influence of the Prandtl number, the present results and previous convective heat

156 transfer data for various working fluids from the literature [15-20, 26] are compared in Fig. 10. Two

157 curves predicted by the Dittus-Boelter equation, which represent fluid heating (Pr0.4) and fluid cooling

158 (Pr0.3), are also presented in Fig. 10. It can be seen that most of the experimental data are congruent

159 with the two curves, except for the data from Kirst et al. [17] and that of NaOH [26]. Clearly, the

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160 present experimental results are largely consistent with the experimental data collected from the

161 literature [15-20, 26]. These comparisons demonstrate that the Prandtl number dependence provided by

162 existing correlations is also applicable to molten salt convection.

163 Uncertainty analysis is necessary in order to validate the accuracy of the present experimental

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164 results. The uncertainties of the calculated results were evaluated using standard error analysis. In

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165 calculating the error in any measurement, both systematic and random errors must be accounted for.

166 Systematic errors are related to instruments used in the measurements, and random errors concern data

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167 plots after the same measurements are repeated. In this experiment, the variables involved are

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168 temperature, flow rate, and wind speed. The random errors in this experiment are related to the
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169 scattering of data during the period of stable temperatures and flow rates. The random error for the

170 calculated values of heat loss, specific heat, heat flux, heat transfer, and Nusselt number are calculated
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171 using the formula defined below:

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2 2 2
172  ∂f   ∂f   ∂f 
δy=  δ x  + δx  +L + δx 
(8)
 ∂ x1  ∂x2  ∂xn
1 2 n
  
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173 Specifically, the desired result is a well-behaved function f ( x1, x 2, L, xn) of the direct physical

174 variables (x1, x2, ...., xn) that have uncertainties (δx1, δx2, …, δxn). Then the equation can be written as
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175 y = f ( x1, x 2, L, xn) (9)

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176 The errors of the calculated heat loss are presented in Table 4. It can be seen that the maximum and
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177 minimum error are ±3.18% and ±2.65%, respectively (in the first two experiments mentioned in this

178 paper, the same temperature sensor and flow sensor were used). The errors of the measured and

179 calculated parameters of the turbulent convective heat transfer are presented in Table 5. The errors of

180 the calculated parameters are estimated to be ±9.6% for the total heat transfer coefficient, ±7.0% for the

181 Nusselt number of molten salt, and ±9.3% for the heat flux between the water and molten salt.

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182 4. Conclusions

183 (1) An experimental system consisting of a parabolic trough solar collector and heat transfer was set up

184 with a new molten salt employed as the heat transfer medium (with a melting point of 86℃ and a

185 working temperature upper limit of 550℃); The circulation of molten salts in the system took place

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186 over 1,000 hrs. The results indicated that operation, starting, and stopping the system using low melting

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187 point salts resulted in a lower risk of freezing and plugging compared with utilizing high melting point

188 salts(e.g., solar salts).

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189 (2) Experiments were conducted to obtain the thermal loss of the HCE as the temperature of the molten

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190 salt changed. The results were compared with the data for a PTR70 obtained in the same way but using
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191 oil as the working fluid. The results showed that the thermal loss of the tested tube was higher than that

192 of the PTR70. Moreover, the thermal loss at the joints was about 5% of the total loss in the entire test
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193 collector tube, but if there was no thermal insulation, this proportion would reach about 18%.
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194 (3) The total heat transfer coefficient of the water-to-salt heat exchanger was obtained for different
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195 temperatures and flow rates. The results showed that the total heat transfer coefficient of the

196 water-to-salt heat exchanger ranged between 600 and 1200 W/(m2·k) for 10,000<Re<21,000 and
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197 9.5<Pr<12.2.
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198 (4) The convective heat transfer coefficients and correlations for low melting point salts were
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199 calculated for 10,000<Re<21,000 and 9.5<Pr<12.2. Comparisons were made between the present

200 experimental results and well-known empirical correlations. The present experimental data of

201 convective heat transfer coefficients with low melting point molten salts demonstrated good agreement

202 with the Sieder-Tate equation and the Gnielinski equation.

203 (5) The application of low melting point molten salts to CSP systems can help minimize operation

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204 costs and required investment levels, and many practical engineering problems can be addressed easily.

205 The experimental results will hopefully provide a helpful reference for the development of

206 high-temperature molten salt CSP systems.

207 Acknowledgements

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208 The authors are grateful for the financial support provided by the National Natural Science

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209 Foundation of China (Grant No. 51206004 and No. 51361135702), the National Basic Research

210 Program of China (Grant No. 2015CB251303 and No. 2011CB707202), and the International

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211 S&T Cooperation Program of China (Grant No. 2014DF60600).

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212 References
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213 [1] X. L. Wei, Q. Peng, J. Ding, X. X. Yang, J. P. Yang, B. Long, Theoretical study on thermal

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215 [2] Z. Yang, V. S. Garimella, Thermal analysis of solar thermal energy storage in a molten-salt
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216 thermocline, Sol. Energy 84 (2010) 974-985.

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217 [3] M. J. Montes, A. Abánades, J. M. Martínez-Val, M. Valdés, Solar multiple optimization for a

218 solar-only thermal power plant, using oil as heat transfer fluid in the parabolic trough collectors,
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219 Sol. Energy 83 (2009) 2165-2176.

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220 [4] L. Martín, M. Martín, Optimal year-round operation of a concentrated solar energy plant in the
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221 south of Europe, Appl. Therm. Eng. 59 (2013) 627-633.

222 [5] J. Pacio, C. Singer, T. Wetzel, R. Uhlig, Thermodynamic evaluation of liquid metals as heat

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224 [6] A. Rovira, M. J. Montes, F. Varela, M. Gil, Comparison of heat transfer fluid and direct steam

225 generation technologies for integrated solar combined cycles, Appl. Therm. Eng. 52 (2013)

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226 264-274.

227 [7] M. Mussard, O. J. Nydal, Comparison of oil and aluminum-based heat storage charged with a

228 small-scale solar parabolic trough, Appl. Therm. Eng. 58 (2013) 146-154.

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230 trough solar field, Energy 29 (2004) 861-864.

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231 [9] M. S. Sohal, P. Sabharwall, P. Calderoni, Conceptual design of forced convection molten salt heat

232 transfer testing loop, Report No. INL/EXT-10-19908, 2010, pp. 6-10.

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233 [10] R. I. Olivares, The thermal stability of molten nitrite/nitrates salt for solar thermal energy storage

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234 in different atmospheres, Sol. Energy 86 (2012) 2576-2583.
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235 [11] Y. J. Wang, Q. B. Liu, L. J. Lei, H. G. Jin, A three-dimensional simulation of a parabolic trough

236 solar collector system using molten salt as heat transfer fluid, Appl. Therm. Eng. 70 (2014)
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237 462-476.
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238 [12] H. Michels, R. Pitz-Paal, Cascaded latent heat storage for parabolic trough solar power plants, Sol.
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239 Energy 81 (2007) 829-837.

240 [13] G. Glatzmaier, Summary report for concentrating solar power thermal storage workshop.
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241 Technical Report NREL/TP-5500-52134, August 2011.

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242 [14] N. Ren, Y. T. Wu, C. F. Ma, L. X. Sang, Preparation and thermal properties of quaternary
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243 mixed nitrate with low melting point, Sol. Energy. Mat. Sol. Cells 127 (2014) 6-13.

244 [15] B. Liu, Y. T. Wu, C. F. Ma, M. Ye, H. Guo, Turbulent convective heat transfer with molten

245 salt in a circular pipe, Int. Commun. Heat Mass 36 (2009) 912-916.

246 [16] H.W. Hoffman, J. Lones, Fused salt heat transfer, part II: forced convection heat transfer in

247 circular tubes containing NaF-KF-LiF eutectic, Report No. ORNL-1777, 1955, pp. 5-25.

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248 [17] H. W. Hoffman, S. I. Cohen, Fused salt heat transfer, part III: forced convection heat transfer

249 in circular tubes containing the salt mixture NaNO2-KNO3-NaNO3, Report No.

250 ORNL-2433,1960, pp. 9-13.

251 [18] M. D. Silverman, W. R. Huntley, H. E. Robertson, Heat Transfer Measurements in a forced

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252 convection loop with two molten-fluoride salts: LiF-BeF2-ThF4-UF4 and eutectic

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253 NaBF4-NaF, Report No. ORNL/TM-5335, 1976, pp. 16-21.

254 [19] Y. T. Wu, B. Liu, C. F. Ma, H. Guo, Convective heat transfer in the laminar-turbulent

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255 transition region with molten salt in a circular tube, Exp. Therm. Fluid. Sci. 33 (2009)

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256 1128-1132.
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257 [20] Y. T. Wu, C. Chen, B. Liu, C. F. Ma, Investigation on forced convective heat transfer of

258 molten salts in circular tubes, Int. Commun. Heat Mass 39(10) (2012) 1550-1555.
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259 [21] F. P. Incropera, D. P. DeWitt, Fundamentals of heat and mass transfer, third edition, New
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260 York: John Wiley and Sons, 1990.

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261 [22] T. Wendelin, SolTrace: A new optical modeling tool for concentrating solar optics,

262 Proceedings of the ISEC, Hawaii, 2003.

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263 [23] Sandia Corporation, Final test results for the Schott HCE on a LS-2 Collector, Sandia
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264 National Laboratory, 2005.

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265 [24] J. P. Holman, Heat Transfer, ninth edition, New York, 2002, pp. 261-270.

266 [25] V. Gnielinski, New equations for heat and mass transfer in turbulent pipe and channel flow,

267 Int. Chem. Eng. 16(2) (1976) 359-367.

268 [26] D. F. Dipprey, An experimental investigation of heat and momentum transfer in smooth and

269 rough tubes at various Prandtl numbers, PhD thesis, California Institute of Technology,

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270 Pasadena, California, 1961.

271 Nomenclature

272 ,m mass flow rate, (kg/s)

273 A heat transfer area, (m2)

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274 Cp specific heat, (kg/(kg·K))

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275 t temperature, (K)

276 h heat transfer coefficient, (W/(m2·K))

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277 Nu Nusselt number (hl/k)

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278 Pr Prandtl number (ν/a)
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279 Ra Rayleigh number

280 d diameter, (m)

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281 L length, (m)

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282 Greek symbols

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283 λ thermal conductivity, (W/(m·K))

284 σ radiation constant, (W/(m2·K4))

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285 ε emissivity
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286 Subscripts
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287 i inlet parameters, inner side parameters

288 o outlet parameters, outer parameters

289 s parameters of molten salt

290 w parameters of water, parameters of tube wall

291 ∞ parameters of surroundings

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Figure captions:
Fig. 1. Parabolic trough solar collector and heat transfer system with molten salt
Fig. 2. Thermal loss of the HCE and terminal
Fig. 3. Comparison between experimental results and the PTR70
Fig. 4. Schematic of the double-pipe heat exchanger
Fig. 5. Total heat transfer coefficient of the exchanger as the salt Re changes
Fig. 6. Fitting curve of the molten salt Nu and relative errors

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Fig. 7. Comparison of present experimental results, existing data, and the Dittus-Boelter equation
Fig. 8. Comparison of present experimental results, existing data, and the Sieder-Tate equation
Fig. 9. Comparison of present experimental results, existing data, and the Gnielinski equation

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Fig. 10. Prandtl number dependence of the Nusselt number of turbulent flow in a circular tube

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List of Figures

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Fig. 1. Parabolic trough solar collector and heat transfer system with molten salt

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12000

10500
Terminal
9000 Test HCE

Thermal Loss (W)

7500

6000

4500

PT
3000

1500

RI
150 200 250 300 350 400 450
Ave.Temp. Above Ambient (℃ )

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Fig. 2. Thermal loss of the HCE and terminal

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900
800 Test HCE
PTR 70
700

Thermal Loss (w/m)

600
500
400
300

PT
200
100
0

RI
100 150 200 250 300 350 400 450
Ave.Temp.above Ambient (℃ )

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Fig. 3. Comparison between experimental results and the PTR70

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Fig. 4. Schematic of the double-pipe heat exchanger

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Total Heat Transfer Coefficient(w/(m2 k))

1400 Temp Salt 200℃
Temp Salt 220℃
Temp Salt 240℃
1200 Temp Salt 260℃

1000

800

PT
600

RI
400
15000 20000 25000 30000 35000
Rei

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Fig. 5. Total heat transfer coefficient of the exchanger as the salt Re changes

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120
Nu=0.0239Re0.804Pr0.33
+7%
100

-7%
80

0.33
Nui/Pr 60

PT
RI
40
20000 30000 40000
Rei

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Fig. 6. Fitting curve of the molten salt Nu and relative errors

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250
200

150 +23%

0.3
100

Nu/Pr Present experient

PT
LINO3
Hitec
50 Hitec-Kirst
Hitec-Hoffman
LiF-BeF2-ThF4-UF4
Eq.Dittus-Boelter NaBF4-NaF

RI
20000 40000 60000
Re

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Fig. 7. Comparison of present experimental results, existing data, and the Dittus-Boelter equation

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210
180
150 Eq.Sieder-Tate

0.14
120

Nu/Pr (µb/µw
-10%
90

1/3
60 Present experiment

PT
LINO3
Hitec
Hitec-Kirst
Hitec-Hoffman
LiF-BeF2-ThF4-UF4
NaBF4-NaF

RI
30
12000 24000 3600048000
Re

SC
Fig. 8. Comparison of present experimental results, existing data, and the Sieder-Tate equation

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200

0.11
160

Nu/Pr [1+(d/L) ](Prf/Prw)

Eq.Gnielinski
120

80

2/3
-20%

0.4
Present experient
40 Hitec

PT
LINO3
Hitec-Kirst
Hitec-Hoffman
NaBF4-NaF

12000 24000 3600048000

RI
Re

SC
Fig. 9. Comparison of present experimental results, existing data, and the Gnielinski equation

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0.8 0.4
Nu=0.023Re Pr

0.1

0.8
Present experient

Nu/Re
LINO3
Hitec
Hitec-Kirst
Hitec-Hoffman
LiF-BeF2-ThF4-UF4
0.8 0.3
Nu=0.023Re Pr NaBF4-NaF
NaOH

PT
ethylene glycol
water
air

0.01
1 10 100
Pr

RI
Fig. 10. Prandtl number dependence of the Nusselt number of turbulent flow in a circular tube

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Highlights

A low melting point molten salt was applied in CSP systems.

Experiment indicates a low risk of freezing and plugging.

The results show the proportion of the thermal loss at the joints.

PT
Total heat transfer coefficient of the water-to-salt heat exchanger was obtained.

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