Heat Transfer in Microchannels with Upstream–Downstream Regions Coupling and Wall Conjugation Effects

Abstract

Heat transfer in microchannels is analyzed, including the coupling between the regions upstream and downstream of the heat transfer section and taking into account the wall conjugation and axial diffusion effects which are often of relevance in microchannels. The methodology is based on a recently proposed single-domain formulation for modeling the heat transfer phenomena simultaneously at the fluid stream and the channel walls, and applying the generalized integral transform technique (GITT) to find a hybrid numerical–analytical solution to the unified partial differential energy equation. The proposed mathematical model involves coefficients represented as space-dependent functions, with abrupt transitions at the fluid–wall interfaces, which carry the information concerning the transition of the two domains, unifying the model into a single-domain formulation with variable coefficients. Convergence of the proposed eigenfunction expansions is thoroughly investigated and the physical analysis is focused on the effects of the coupling between the downstream and the upstream flow regions.