Experimental investigation on heat transfer correlations of n-decane under supercritical pressure

A series of electrically heated tube experiments was conducted to investigate the heat transfer correlations of n-decane under conditions similar to a regeneratively cooled scramjet. The fuel was heated in a 1.5 mm inner diameter tube of 1Cr18Ni9Ti and the fuel pressure was varied from 4.0 to 4.3 MPa in the experiments. The Reynolds number ranged from about 800 to 70,000. The heat transfer correlations of n-decane in laminar, transition and turbulent flow regions were determined by using the method of least squares curve fitting. The calculated outer wall temperatures were compared with data in present and another electrically heated tube experiments, a fuel-cooled panel test, and a regeneratively cooled scramjet combustor test. The results of comparisons validated the applicability of the presented correlations.