Modeling of the time evolution of the solidification front in ice cubes

•3D moving-boundary model for water solidification in ice cubes is presented.•Experiments were performed in a purpose-built closed-loop wind-tunnel facility.•Ice cube of 145 ml with distilled, mineral, and filtered tap water was evaluated.•Ice cube was modeled as a pyramid trunk and Stefan's fo...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:International journal of refrigeration 2022-11, Vol.143, p.37-42
Main Authors: Berno, Guilherme M., Knabben, Fernando T., Hermes, Christian J.L.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Household refrigerator
Ice maker
Machine à glace
Modeling
Modélisation
Réfrigérateur domestique
Solidification
Stefan
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:•3D moving-boundary model for water solidification in ice cubes is presented.•Experiments were performed in a purpose-built closed-loop wind-tunnel facility.•Ice cube of 145 ml with distilled, mineral, and filtered tap water was evaluated.•Ice cube was modeled as a pyramid trunk and Stefan's formulation was applied.•Deviations within a ± 10% error band were observed for all cases. The present work is aimed at putting forward a three-dimensional moving-boundary model to calculate the water solidification in ice trays subjected to operating conditions typically found in household appliances. To better understand the physical phenomena and validate the model, experiments were performed in a purpose-built closed-loop wind tunnel facility at -23 °C and air flow rate of 10 m³ h−1 using a single volume of 145 ml fed with distilled, mineral, and filtered tap water. The end of the solidification process was identified by monitoring the cooling curves with the aid of seven thermocouples placed within the ice cube. In the numerical front, the ice cube was modeled as a pyramid trunk and Stefan's formulation was applied to each of the domain boundaries so that the ice thickness could be calculated over time. Deviations within a ±10% error band were observed for all cases. A good agreement between the model predictions for the time evolution of the ice cube temperature and the experimental counterparts was also verified. In addition, literature data for the position of the solidification front and the remaining liquid fraction were fairly predicted by the model.
ISSN:0140-7007
1879-2081
DOI:10.1016/j.ijrefrig.2022.06.026