Numerical and experimental investigations of the performance of fiber-glass/talc epoxy composites insulated water heater
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Date
2021-01
Authors
Adewumi, O.O.
Onitiri, M.A.
Olusanya, A.H.
Oluwadusin, A.T.
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Bayero Journal of Engineering and Technology
Abstract
The determination the best epoxy composite reinforced with talc and fiber glass that can be used for insulation in hot water storage applications is investigated in this study. Numerical simulations, using a computational fluid dynamics software, were carried out on various percentage mixtures of epoxy composite reinforced with talc and fiber glass cured at different temperatures and their performance as insulators for water heating tank was analyzed and compared with other materials. Thereafter, experimental tests were carried out on the chosen composite that is fabricated and results obtained compared with those obtained numerically. Results obtained showed that the epoxy-based composite cured at 75ºC is the best insulator for hot water storage. Also, when the interface maximum temperature at the inner tank wall/composite for all the 40 different fiber-glass/talc filled epoxy composites were compared with two common mate-rials - fiber-glass and epoxy, 16 of these composites possessed better heat storage capabilities than fiber glass and epoxy. This shows that fiber-glass/talc epoxy composites are good replacements for existing materials used for insula-tion in hot water storage applications.
Description
Scholarly article
Keywords
Composites , Insulator , Hot water storage , Epoxy , Talc , Fiber-glass , Research Subject Categories::TECHNOLOGY::Engineering mechanics
Citation
Adewumi, O. O., Onitiri, M. A., Olusanya, A. H. and Oluwadunsin, A. T. (Jan 2021) “Numerical and experimental investigations of the performance of fiber-glass/talc epoxy composites insulated water heater”, Bayero Journal of Engineering and Technology. Vol. 16, No. 1, pp.23-30