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Experiments and Numerical Simulations for Heat Transfer and Flow of...
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Experiments and Numerical Simulations for Heat Transfer and Flow of Supercritical Fluids

A special issue of Processes (ISSN 2227-9717). This special issue belongs to the section "Energy Systems".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 March 2026 | Viewed by 3255

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Qian Li

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Energy and Power Engineering, Northeast Electric Power University, Jilin 132012, China
Interests: supercritical fluids; numerical simulation method; flow and heat transfer; system; PCHE; natural gas liquefaction and gasification
Dr. Jue Wang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Energy Science and Engineering, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013, China
Interests: phase changing; bubble dynamics; CHF; marangoni effect; natural convection
Dr. Wenke Zheng

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Architecture and Design, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150090, China
Interests: fluid mechanics; multiphase flow; phase change heat transfer

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

With the continuous development of the industrial and energy field, the pursuit of higher efficiency, brought about by higher temperatures and higher pressures, is improving. Therefore, the supercritical fluids have become a research focus, of which flow and heat transfer characteristics are some of the most important research directions. For example, supercritical water cycle thermal power plants, supercritical CO2 Brayton cycle power generation systems, natural gas liquefaction and gasification processes, and many other fields are related to the supercritical fluid flow and heat transfer processes. However, the research on the flow and heat transfer characteristics of supercritical fluid in various fields is not yet sufficient. With the development of advanced experimental technology and the improvement of computing power, the research of supercritical fluids has ushered in a new direction of development. At present, it is urgent to carry out research on supercritical fluid flow and heat transfer through advanced technologies, innovative numerical methods, and new theories, contributing to the development and progress of the global industrial system. 

This Special Issue on "Experiments and Numerical Simulations for Heat Transfer and Flow of Supercritical Fluids" seeks high quality works focusing on new research with supercritical fluids. This Special Issue will focus on the new experimental results and numerical simulation methods of supercritical fluids, the interpretation of new phenomena and theories of supercritical fluids, the construction and optimization of the recycling system of supercritical fluids, and the research and breakthrough of equipments. The purpose is to promote communication regarding and the progress of supercritical fluids. 

Topics include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • Advanced supercritical fluids testing technology.
  • Numerical simulation method for supercritical fluids.
  • New characteristics and phenomena of supercritical fluid flow and heat transfer.
  • Supercritical fluids system.
  • Research and optimization of equipment for supercritical fluids. 

I hope you consider participating in this Special Issue.

Dr. Qian Li
Dr. Jue Wang
Dr. Wenke Zheng
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Processes is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • supercritical fluids
  • testing technology
  • numerical simulation method
  • flow and heat transfer
  • system
  • equipment
  • CO2 brayton cycle
  • natural gas liquefaction and gasification

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (6 papers)

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Research

21 pages, 5665 KiB  
Article
Numerical Investigation on Heat Transfer of Supercritical CO2 in Minichannel with Fins Integrated in Sidewalls
by Lei Chai
Processes 2025, 13(8), 2630; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr13082630 - 20 Aug 2025
Viewed by 144
Abstract
Gas coolers play a critical role in CO2 refrigeration and heat pump systems, where their thermohydraulic characteristics substantially influence the overall system performance. To improve the heat transfer performance of gas coolers, minichannels with aligned or offset fins integrated in the channel [...] Read more.
Gas coolers play a critical role in CO2 refrigeration and heat pump systems, where their thermohydraulic characteristics substantially influence the overall system performance. To improve the heat transfer performance of gas coolers, minichannels with aligned or offset fins integrated in the channel sidewalls are proposed to enlarge the heat transfer surface and intensify the flow turbulence. Unlike conventional refrigerants, supercritical CO2 exhibits significant variations in thermophysical properties with temperature changes, which results in distinct heat transfer behavior. Three-dimensional numerical models are therefore purposely developed by employing the Shear Stress Transport k-ω turbulent model and including the entrance region effect, NIST real-gas thermophysical properties and buoyancy effect. A constant heat flux boundary is employed on the four-side channel walls to ensure that the temperature of CO2 flowing in the channel exactly decreases from 373.15 K to 308.15 K. The results show that the fins integrated in the channel sidewalls can significantly improve the heat transfer performance, and the heat transfer coefficient significantly increases with increasing mass flux. Compared to the reference smooth channel, the heat transfer performance is enhanced by a factor of 1.85–2.15 with aligned fins and 1.44–1.61 with offset fins. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Experiments and Numerical Simulations for Heat Transfer and Flow of Supercritical Fluids)
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19 pages, 2011 KiB  
Article
Simulation and Optimization of a Novel FLNG Liquefaction Process Based on Supersonic Swirling Separation and Nitrogen Expansion Refrigeration
by Lei Gao, Zhaoxi Wang, Guodong Qiu, Yihuai Hua, Jiang Bian and Weihua Cai
Processes 2025, 13(8), 2530; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr13082530 - 11 Aug 2025
Viewed by 263
Abstract
To meet the high standards required for the liquefaction process by the Floating Liquefied Natural Gas System (FLNG), including low power consumption, compact footprint, high safety, resistance to waves, and portability, this paper proposes a novel FLNG liquefaction process which combines the supersonic [...] Read more.
To meet the high standards required for the liquefaction process by the Floating Liquefied Natural Gas System (FLNG), including low power consumption, compact footprint, high safety, resistance to waves, and portability, this paper proposes a novel FLNG liquefaction process which combines the supersonic swirling separation technology with pressurized liquefaction technology. The process is simulated and optimized using Aspen HYSYS V10 software and genetic algorithms. The results indicate that the specific power consumption of this liquefaction process is only 0.208 kWh/m3, with the cooler, expander, and compressor being the main equipment responsible for exergy losses, accounting for 28.85%, 26.48%, and 21.70%, respectively. This liquefaction process is relatively adaptable to changes in feed gas pressure, temperature, and methane content. The specific power consumption slightly increases with the increasing feed gas pressure and temperature, while it exhibits some fluctuations with the increasing methane content. The process requires a low CO2 removal rate, possesses moisture pretreatment capability, has fewer pieces of equipment, and saves a significant amount of valuable space. It combines low specific power consumption, minimal impact from swaying, and high safety, providing considerable application potential in future offshore natural gas development. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Experiments and Numerical Simulations for Heat Transfer and Flow of Supercritical Fluids)
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22 pages, 7906 KiB  
Article
Trajectory-Integrated Kriging Prediction of Static Formation Temperature for Ultra-Deep Well Drilling
by Qingchen Wang, Wenjie Jia, Zhengming Xu, Tian Tian and Yuxi Chen
Processes 2025, 13(7), 2303; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr13072303 - 19 Jul 2025
Viewed by 395
Abstract
The accurate prediction of static formation temperature (SFT) is essential for ensuring safety and efficiency in ultra-deep well drilling operations. Excessive downhole temperatures (>150 °C) can degrade drilling fluids, damage temperature-sensitive tools, and pose serious operational risks. Conventional methods for SFT determination—including direct [...] Read more.
The accurate prediction of static formation temperature (SFT) is essential for ensuring safety and efficiency in ultra-deep well drilling operations. Excessive downhole temperatures (>150 °C) can degrade drilling fluids, damage temperature-sensitive tools, and pose serious operational risks. Conventional methods for SFT determination—including direct measurement, temperature recovery inversion, and artificial intelligence models—are often limited by post-drilling data dependency, insufficient spatial resolution, high computational costs, or a lack of adaptability to complex wellbore geometries. In this study, we propose a new pseudo-3D Kriging interpolation framework that explicitly incorporates real wellbore trajectories to improve the spatial accuracy and applicability of pre-drilling SFT predictions. By systematically optimizing key hyperparameters (θ = [10, 10], lob = [0.1, 0.1], upb = [20, 200]) and applying a grid resolution of 100 × 100, the model demonstrates high predictive fidelity. Validation using over 5.1 million temperature data points from 113 wells in the Shunbei Oilfield reveals a relative error consistently below 5% and spatial interpolation deviations within 5 °C. The proposed approach enables high-resolution, trajectory-integrated SFT forecasting before drilling with practical computational requirements, thereby supporting proactive thermal risk mitigation and significantly enhancing operational decision-making on ultra-deep wells. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Experiments and Numerical Simulations for Heat Transfer and Flow of Supercritical Fluids)
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24 pages, 3521 KiB  
Article
The Dynamic Response Characteristics and Working Fluid Property Differences Analysis of CO2–Kr Mixture Power Cycle System
by Minghui Fang, Lihua Cao, Xueyan Xu and Qingqiang Meng
Processes 2025, 13(6), 1735; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr13061735 - 1 Jun 2025
Viewed by 453
Abstract
With the advancement of the energy transition, the thermodynamic degradation under high-load conditions and economic bottlenecks of the sCO2 Brayton cycle have become more prominent. CO2 mixture working fluids can improve system efficiency and economics through property optimization. However, the dynamic [...] Read more.
With the advancement of the energy transition, the thermodynamic degradation under high-load conditions and economic bottlenecks of the sCO2 Brayton cycle have become more prominent. CO2 mixture working fluids can improve system efficiency and economics through property optimization. However, the dynamic response characteristics of the system under disturbance factors are still unclear. Based on this, this paper establishes a dynamic model of the recompressed Brayton cycle for CO2 and CO2–Kr mixture. The dynamic behaviors of the two working fluids under mass flow, heat source power, and rotational speed disturbances are systematically compared, revealing the impact of the addition of Kr on the system’s dynamic response characteristics. From the perspective of the coupling mechanism in a mixture of working fluids, this paper further explores the reasons behind the differences in dynamic performance. The results show that mass disturbances have the most significant impact on the dynamic characteristics of the system. The response time of the turbine outlet temperature in the pure CO2 system is 15.43 s, with a temperature response amplitude of 12.32 K. When the system recovers to a steady state, the system’s efficiency and specific work are 30.37% and 42.52 kW/kg, respectively. In comparison, the CO2–Kr system demonstrates better dynamic performance, with the turbine outlet temperature response time reduced by 3.5 s and the temperature fluctuation amplitude decreased by 6.25 K. Additionally, the efficiency and specific work of the CO2–Kr system increased by 5.77% and 7.29 kW/kg, respectively. The introduction of Kr changes the physical property parameters of the working fluid, enhancing flow stability, and reducing pressure and temperature fluctuations, thereby improving the dynamic performance and disturbance resistance of the CO2–Kr system. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Experiments and Numerical Simulations for Heat Transfer and Flow of Supercritical Fluids)
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16 pages, 6269 KiB  
Article
Performance and Reliability Analysis of a New Drone Bottle Valve
by Lei Wang, Lu Gan, Lijun Wang, Congcong Xu, Yixiang Chen, Guanzhu Ren and Weihua Cai
Processes 2025, 13(4), 1128; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr13041128 - 9 Apr 2025
Viewed by 494
Abstract
As the global demand for sustainable energy grows, hydrogen fuel has become a promising alternative to fossil fuels, particularly in the drone industry. Drones, known for their high mobility and low operational costs, are increasingly utilized in sectors like defense, agriculture, and logistics. [...] Read more.
As the global demand for sustainable energy grows, hydrogen fuel has become a promising alternative to fossil fuels, particularly in the drone industry. Drones, known for their high mobility and low operational costs, are increasingly utilized in sectors like defense, agriculture, and logistics. However, traditional battery-powered drones are limited by flight duration and recharging times. Hydrogen fuel cells present a viable solution, with effective hydrogen pressure regulation being the key to ensuring their stable operation. This paper presents an innovative valve design for drones, developed to regulate the pressure reduction of high-pressure hydrogen gas from the storage tank to the fuel cell system. The valve incorporates a multi-stage pressure reduction mechanism, optimized to minimize the adverse effects of gas flow. Using a combination of experimental tests and numerical simulations, the study examines hydrogen flow characteristics at various valve openings, focusing on pressure, velocity distribution, and energy consumption. The results demonstrate that narrowing the valve opening improves pressure reduction, effectively controlling hydrogen flow and stabilizing pressure, thereby ensuring proper fuel cell operation. Further analysis reveals that smaller valve openings help reduce turbulence and energy loss, improving flow stability and system efficiency. This research provides valuable insights into hydrogen pressure regulation in drone fuel delivery systems, especially under extreme conditions such as high pressures and large pressure ratios. The findings offer both theoretical and practical guidance for optimizing hydrogen fuel delivery systems in fuel cell-powered drones, contributing to improve energy management and enhance performance in future drone applications. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Experiments and Numerical Simulations for Heat Transfer and Flow of Supercritical Fluids)
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19 pages, 4454 KiB  
Article
Combined Cycle Gas Turbine System with Molten Salt Energy Storage: Peak Regulation and Flexibility
by Lihua Cao, Jingwen Yu, Lei Wang and Xin Xu
Processes 2025, 13(3), 604; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr13030604 - 20 Feb 2025
Viewed by 1122
Abstract
With the increase in the amount of new energy in new power systems, the response speed of power demand changes in combined cycle gas turbines (CCGTs) is facing new challenges. This paper studies an integrated operation strategy for the coupled molten salt energy [...] Read more.
With the increase in the amount of new energy in new power systems, the response speed of power demand changes in combined cycle gas turbines (CCGTs) is facing new challenges. This paper studies an integrated operation strategy for the coupled molten salt energy storage of CCGT systems, and analyzes the system through simulation calculation. The advantages of the coupled system are determined by comparing the electrical output regulation capability, thermoelectric ratio, gas consumption rate, and peaking capacity ratio. In addition, using stored energy to maintain the temperature of the heat recovery steam generator (HRSG) can shorten the system’s restart time, improve the unit’s operating efficiency, and reduce the start-up cost. Our findings can be used as a reference for accelerating the performance improvement of CCGT systems, which is also crucial in technologies for waste heat recovery, molten salt energy storage technology, and promoting the sustainable development of energy systems. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Experiments and Numerical Simulations for Heat Transfer and Flow of Supercritical Fluids)
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