Thermal driving head is the force that causes natural circulation to take place. It is caused by the difference in density between two bodies or areas of fluid. Thermal Engineering
Thermal Driving Head
Thermal driving head is the force that causes natural circulation to take place. It is caused by the difference in density between two bodies or areas of fluid. Consider two equal volumes of the same type of fluid. If the two volumes are not at the same temperature, then the volume with the higher temperature will also have a lower density and, therefore, less mass. It is known that the density of gases and liquids depends on temperature, generally decreasing (due to fluid expansion) with increasing temperature. Since the volume at the higher temperature will have a lower mass, it will also have less force exerted on it by gravity. This difference in the force of gravity exerted on the fluid will tend to cause the hotter fluid to rise and the colder fluid to sink. Thermal driving head can be simply calculated using the difference in hydrostatic pressures:
As can be seen, the greater the temperature difference between the hot and cold areas of fluid, the greater the thermal driving head and the resulting flow rate.
Natural circulation flow rate in the loop, under steady state condition is determined from the balance between the driving and the resisting forces. Driving force results from density difference between hot leg and cold leg of the loop. The head required to compensate for the head losses is created by density gradients and elevation changes.
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See also:
Natural Circulation
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