Numerical investigation of the thermal performance optimization inside a heat exchanger tube using different novel combination of perforations on Y-shaped insert

Metallic inserts have been receiving considerable interest in recent research as a means of enhancing passive thermal performance. Nevertheless, little research has been conducted on Y-shaped inserts with different perforations. The purpose of this study is to seek out optimum performance in terms of heat transfer employing hexagonal, trapezoidal, kite, and hybrid shapes with Perforation Indexes (PI) of 10%, 20%, and 30%. While conducting the analyses, air is utilized as the working fluid, using Reynolds numbers (Re) ranging from 3000 to 21000. The findings demonstrate that Nusselt number (Nu) values of up to 225 can be achieved at Re = 21000 for trapezoidal designs with a PI of 20%. In contrast, such case seems to have the lowest friction factor (f) of 0.07, yielding in the most optimized thermal performance. With PI = 10%, hexagonal perforations have the maximum f of 0.24, making it particularly prone to pressure drop. When compared to the smooth tube, Nu improved up to 6.15 times and f enhanced up to 5.03 times. The trapezoidal configuration with PI = 20% yielded the highest thermal performance factor, a TPF of 3.68, making it the best optimal case in terms of both thermal and hydraulic performance.