Analytical Analysis of Heat Transfer and Entropy Generation in a Tube Filled with Double-Layer Porous Media.

The heat transfer and entropy generation in a tube filled with double-layer porous media are analytically investigated. The wall of the tube is subjected to a constant heat flux. The Darcy-Brinkman model is utilized to describe the fluid flow, and the local thermal non-equilibrium model is employed to establish the energy equations. The solutions of the temperature and velocity distributions are analytically derived and validated in limiting case. The analytical solutions of the local and total entropy generation, as well as the Nusselt number, are further derived to analyze the performance of heat transfer and irreversibility of the tube. The influences of the Darcy number, the Biot number, the dimensionless interfacial radius, and the thermal conductivity ratio, on flow and heat transfer are discussed. The results indicate, for the first time, that the Nusselt number for the tube filled with double-layer porous media can be larger than that for the tube filled with single layer porous medium, while the total entropy generation rate for the tube filled with double-layer porous media can be less than that for the tube filled with single layer porous medium. And the dimensionless interfacial radius corresponding to the maximum value of the Nusselt number is different from that corresponding to the minimum value of the total entropy generation rate.