This paper is focused on the heat transfer augment ability and friction factor of different cross-section pin fins. An experimental study is conducted in a wide rectangular channel. The steady-state thermochromic liquid crystals (TLC) method is applied to measure the tested surface temperature. Nine sets of pin fins are employed in the experiment. The nominal diameter of all pin fins is the same value. Nine sets of pin fins have three roundness shapes (Circle, Ellipse and Oblong), three streamline shapes (Dropform, NACA and Lancet) and three quadrangle shapes (Diamond, Diamond-s and Square), respectively. The arrangement parameters of all nine shapes are kept the same. As they have the same nominal diameter and arrangement, the channel blockage ratio is the same for each pin fin set. Reynolds numbers range from 10,000 to 60,000. The pressure losses of pin fin arrays are measured to obtain friction factor. Meanwhile, the overall thermal performances of all nine sets are also considered and compared. The results show heat transfer enhancement abilities of quadrangle shape pin fins are relatively higher than the roundness and streamline shapes. Diamond-s pin fins present the largest averaged Nusselt number and overall thermal performance on the endwall for all the nine pin fins under different Re. Concerning overall thermal performance, the traditional Circle pin fin is the second best. The pressure loss of streamline shape pin fins is the lowest in these three shape types. Moreover, the characteristic of local heat transfer distribution varies substantially for different pin shapes at low Re.

FeCrAl alloys have been suggested as one of the most promising fuel cladding materials for the development of accident tolerance fuel. Creep is one of the important mechanical properties of the FeCrAl alloys used as fuel claddings under high temperature conditions. This work aims to elucidate the deformation feature and underlying mechanism during the creep process of nanocrystalline FeCrAl alloys using atomistic simulations. The creep curves at different conditions are simulated for FeCrAl alloys with grain sizes (GS) of 5.6–40 nm, and the dependence of creep on temperature, stress and GS are analyzed. The transitions of the mechanisms are analyzed by stress and GS exponents firstly, and further checked not only from microstructural evidence, but also from a vital comparison of activation energies for creep and diffusion. Under low stress conditions, grain boundary (GB) diffusion contributes more to the overall creep deformation than lattice diffusion does for the alloy with small GSs. However, for the alloy with larger GSs, lattice diffusion controls creep. Additionally, a high temperature helps the transition of diffusional creep from the GB to the dominant lattice. Under medium- and high-stress conditions, GB slip and dislocation motion begin to control the creep mechanism. The amount of GB slip increases with the temperature, or decreases with GS. GS and temperature also have an impact on the dislocation behavior. The higher the temperature or the smaller the GS is, the smaller the stress at which the dislocation motion begins to affect creep.

FeCrAl exhibits excellent resistance to high temperatures, corrosion, and irradiation, making it a prime candidate material for accident-tolerant fuel (ATF) cladding. This study investigates the high-temperature creep behavior of FeCrAl alloys with grain sizes of 12.0 μm and 9.9 μm under temperatures ranging from 450 °C to 650 °C and applied stresses between 75 and 200 MPa. The texture, grain morphology, grain orientation, and dislocation density of FeCrAl were characterized by electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD). The results indicate that temperature, applied stress, and grain size are the primary factors governing high-temperature creep behavior. The material texture showed no significant difference before and after creep. Large grains tend to engulf smaller ones during the creep process at lower temperatures and stresses, reducing the proportion of low-angle grain boundaries (LAGBs). In contrast, at higher temperatures or under higher stress, dislocations proliferate within grains, leading to a significant increase in the number of LAGBs. As the applied stress increases, the dominant creep mechanism tends to convert from grain boundary sliding to dislocation motion. Moreover, higher temperatures or smaller grain sizes lower the critical stress required to activate dislocation motion and significantly increase dislocation density, severely degrading the creep resistance.

Flow statistic in the mid-plane of a rectangular channel with diamond-s pin fins was obtained by means of particle imaging velocimetry at Re = 10,000. Large-scale and small-scale fluctuations were separated using proper orthogonal decomposition. The flow characteristics were compared to the Nusselt number distribution on the endwall acquired by thermochromic liquid crystal to reveal the flow mechanism driving heat transfer enhancement. Results indicate that local vorticity plays an important role in strengthening Nu on both sides of leading point (Zone 1). Downstream of the two sharp edges on both sides (Zone 2), small size disturbances from shear layer eddies drive local heat transfer. The flow characteristics and heat transfer distribution downstream of the first row (Zone 3) present alternated feature along Y direction due to the interaction between shear layers of neighboring pin fins. Lateral velocity fluctuation induced by large vortex shedding drives the heat transfer augmentation in Zone 3 where there is violent large vortex shedding. Meanwhile, small size disturbances of the shear layer drive local heat transfer enhancement in Zone 3 downstream of pin fins where large vortex shedding is suppressed. For the second and third rows, there is no difference in the flow characteristics downstream of neighboring pin fins. Small-size fluctuations distributed uniformly downstream of large vortex shedding (Zone 4) resulting in a uniformly distributed Nu.

In order to deepen the understanding of rotating effects on internal cooling, the flow and heat transfer characteristics of 2-pass rotating rectangular smooth/ribbed channels are investigated by Reynolds-Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) simulation. Three rotating numbers (Ro = 0.10, 0.25, and 0.40) are simulated, and the maximum buoyancy parameter (Bo) reaches 5.0. The results show that the rotating buoyancy has significant effects on the flow and heat transfer under high Bo conditions. When Bo > 1.0, rotating buoyancy inducts flow separation near the leading edge (LE) in the first passage, while the air flow in the second passage shows a double-peak profile. With increased Bo, the heat transfer in the first passage is greatly increased, and the maximum growth rate occurs at Bo = 0.6~1.0. However, the heat transfer in the second passage has no obvious changes due to a strong turn effect. In the ribbed channel, rotating effects are much weaker than those in the smooth channel. This research helps to improve the understanding of the internal cooling heat transfer mechanism in land-based gas turbines under typical operating conditions.

The flow field in a channel with staggered pin-fin array was measured using time-resolved Particle Imaging Velocimetry (PIV). The distributions of flow field statistics were compared with those of Nusselt number on the endwall measured by thermochromic liquid crystal (TLC) of the same geometry. Lower-order large-scale fluctuation and higher order small-scale disturbances were examined separately using Proper Orthogonal Decomposition (POD) to study the flow field characteristics and their individual effect on the heat transfer enhancement. Pin fins with circular and square cross-section geometries were studied at Reynolds numbers of 10,000 and 20,000. Results indicate that for circular pin fins, the distribution of lateral/transverse velocity fluctuations or turbulent kinetic energy from large-scale vortex shedding resembles that of local Nu, and the heat transfer augmentation downstream of the recirculation zone is dominant, while the heat transfer enhancement is limited in the shear layer on both sides of recirculation where disturbances are small scale. However, for square pin fins, heat transfer augmentation in the shear layer is as strong as that downstream of recirculation, while large-scale fluctuations downstream is much weaker than small scale disturbances in the shear layer. Compared to small-scale disturbances, large-scale fluctuations are found to contribute more efficiently to endwall heat transfer enhancement both for circular and for square pin fins. Large-scale fluctuation, as well as heat transfer enhancement, weakens with the increase in Reynolds number, while smaller-scale disturbance grows stronger at the same time.