Heat transfer characteristics in regenerator cell for gaseous organic compound treatment

Regenerative combustion technology can efficiently decompose organic gases with high thermal efficiency. This capability is attributed to the regenerator and the periodic gas switching technology. However, published findings regarding the regenerator were inconsistent with some important parameters, and investigations into the regenerative chamber did not provide a comprehensive explanation of the heat transfer characteristics. Therefore, a regenerator cell was investigated in this study. The temperature distribution pattern inside the cell was simulated after model verification. The effects of the superficial velocity, switching time, side width, and wall thickness of the regenerator cell on the outlet temperature, energy recovery ratio, and heat-transfer coefficient were investigated. The outlet temperature, heat transfer, and energy recovery ratio of the regenerator cells varied monotonically during each period. The average energy recovery ratio and heat transfer coefficient indicated that the side width of the regenerator cell was the most significant factor. Meanwhile, the switching time and wall thickness did not significantly affect the energy recovery ratio. The superficial velocity and wall thickness did not significantly affect the heat transfer coefficient.