Laminar flow

[bobby m]

Can any of you guys who understand what laminar flow is and how it relates to a chiller barrell give me a dumbed down explanation,i remember reading about it and forgot what it meant because it got to scientific for me.Thanks for any replys.

[absrbrtek]

The water as it goes down the tubes has a motion that is moving around in the tubes, mixing the water and keeping the heat transfer at its peak thoughout the tube length. Laminar flow of which I have never seen or diagnosed has an insulalating effect. The water flows in a straight line with the outer water being still or slowly moving causing it to insulate the heat tranfer from the inner flowing water.

Now if you can understand my explination your doing good. Having a brain fart on how to get it on paper. :)

[txhvac]

That would be the reason why your barrell tubes, inside your bundle, are "rifled"-having the ridges in the tubing. To help move the water w/ a circulating effect around inside the tube. Pretty much what Absrbrtek said.

[snipe70e]

laminar flow of a liquid or gas refers to a smoth flow where there is no change of direction.

With laminar flow the center of the flow will have a higher velocity than the outside edges.