Abstract

In this study, the enhancement of natural convection heat transfer from a horizontal rectangular fin embedded with rectangular perforations of aspect ratio of two has been examined using finite element technique. The results for perforated fin have been compared with its equivalent solid one. A parametric study for geometrical dimensions and thermal properties of the fin and the perforations was carried out. The study investigated the gain in fin area and of heat transfer coefficients due to perforations. It was found that, for certain range of rectangular dimension and spaces between perforations, there is an augmentation in heat dissipation and a reduction in weight over that of the equivalent solid one. Also, the heat transfer enhancement of the perforated fin increases as the fin thickness and thermal conductivity increase.

Key words: Finite element, perforated fin, heat dissipation, heat transfer augmentation, natural convection, rectangular perforations.