| Abstract: | This paper describes an experimental and theoretical study on the heat transport limits of an osmotic heat pipe operated under atmospheric pressure, using an aqueous solution of polyethylene glycol 600 (0.1 to 1.0 kmol/m3) as the working fluid and 18 tubular‐type acetyl cellulose osmotic membranes. The correlation between the heat transport rate and the effective osmotic area is clarified. Also, the effects of the physical properties of the solution and the geometry of the osmotic heat pipe (e.g., inside diameters of flow lines) on the heat transport rate are theoretically examined. The heat transport rate of the present osmotic heat pipe is found to be about 85% compared with that under an ideal condition such that the solution circulation flow rate is very large, that is, the average concentration in a membrane module is equal to that in the solution loop. © 2000 Scripta Technica, Heat Trans Asian Res, 29(7): 559–572, 2000 |
