Performance prediction of a fin-and-tube heat exchanger considering air-flow reduction due to the frost accumulation

We describe a numerical model for predicting performance of fin-and-tube heat exchangers for air-source heat pumps that takes into account airflow reduction due to the accumulation of frost. The thermal resistances between the air, frost, and refrigerant are analyzed to evaluate the effects of frost growth. We compare the results of our model with experimental data for a fin-and-tube heat exchanger and with the results of existing models. We conduct experiments to obtain the correlations between the pressure drop and the Reynolds number, the temperatures of the air and the cold surface, and the humidity. The simulated heat-transfer rates and frost mass agreed with the experimental data to within 7% and 9%, respectively.