Heat transfer and friction characteristics of plain fin-and-tube heat exchangers, part II: Correlation

A correlation for fin-and-tube heat exchanger having plain fin geometry is proposed in this study. A total of 74 samples were used to develop the correlation. For practical considerations, the proposed heat transfer correlation had absorbed the contact conductance in the development of correlation. The proposed heat transfer correlation can describe 88.6% of the database within +/-15%, while the proposed friction correlation can correlate 85.1% of the database within +/-15%. The mean deviation of the heat transfer correlation is 7.51%, while that for the proposed friction correlation is 8.31%. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.