CHAPTER 5

CONCLUSION AND DISCUSSIONS

Modern automotive internal combustion engines generate a huge amount of

heat. This heat is generated when the fuel and air mixture is ignited in the combustion
chamber. This explosion causes the piston to be forced down inside the engine and
creates power. Metal temperatures around the combustion chamber can exceed
4000°F. Out of this generated heat approximately 30-35% of the heat in combustion is
converted into power to drive the vehicle and its accessories. Another 35-40% of the
heat is carried off into the atmosphere through the exhaust system. The remaining 30-
35% must be removed from the engine by the cooling system in order to prevent the
overheating of the engine oil, cylinder walls, pistons, valves, and other components by
these extreme temperatures, it is necessary to effectively dispose this heat.
As coolant travels through the engine’s cylinder block, it accumulates heat.
Once the coolant temperature increases above a certain threshold valve, the vehicle’s
thermostat triggers a valve which forces the coolant to flow through the radiator.
Radiator is the key component of engine cooling system. As the coolant flows through
the tubes of the radiator, heat is transferred through the fins and tube walls to the air
by conduction and convection.

5.1. Conclusion
Purpose of this thesis intend to know how to determine the heat transfer rate of
any automobile radiator by using ε-NTU method. In a radiator design, thermal
analysis of an automobile radiator is one of the most important factors. Moreover, it
can also provide for improving the existing radiator design. In this thesis, the heat
transfer performance of 62 kW diesel engine radiator was 68.64 kW at coolant
volumetric flow 3288.6 L/hr and air velocity 25.3 mph when temperature drop of
water at radiator exit is 18.5°C and temperature rise of air at radiator exit is 64.76°C.

5.2. Discussions
By the objective of this thesis, the design parameter of an automobile radiator
is observed and thermal analysis in radiator is calculated for overcoming the
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overheating problem in engine. Furthermore, this thesis can fulfill when designing in
automobile radiators by consideration of radiator weight, cost, less space available,
optimum heat transfer rate and to minimize the stress on the engine as a result of heat
generation.
Heat load depends on heat rejection required to keep engine surface at
optimum temperature. Required amount of heat to remove from engine is calculated
from maximum operating condition. Generally, LMTD or ε-NTU method is used to
calculate the heat transfer rate of radiator. Both methods have its own advantages and
preferred according to data availability. In this thesis, ε-NTU method is utilized to
calculate the heat transfer rate of automobile radiator (62 kW diesel engine).