Thermal Dissipation Performance of Metal–Polymer Composite Heat Exchanger for Enhanced Thermal Management in Compact Electric Geysers

Year : 2026 | Volume : 14 | Special Issue 02 | Page : 618 651
    By

    Neha Dhanawade,

  • Shatakshi Joshi,

  • Purvi Wankhade,

  • Vedant Bhalerao,

  • Pramod Kothmire,

  1. UG Scholar, Department of Mechanical Engineering, MIT Academy of Engineering, Pune, Maharashtra, India
  2. UG Scholar, Department of Mechanical Engineering, MIT Academy of Engineering, Pune, Maharashtra, India
  3. UG Scholar, Department of Mechanical Engineering, MIT Academy of Engineering, Pune, Maharashtra, India
  4. UG Scholar, Department of Mechanical Engineering, MIT Academy of Engineering, Pune, Maharashtra, India
  5. Associate Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering, MIT Academy of Engineering, Pune, Maharashtra, India

Abstract

Most electric geysers these days are made from all-metal stuff, like stainless steel tanks and copper coils for heating, plus mild steel on the outside. Standby heat losses can be 20 to 40 watts, and a 15-litre unit weighs around 6 to 8 kilograms. Manufacturing costs are higher, too. Hard water makes it worse, with limescale building up on the heating elements and cutting thermal conductivity by 10 to 30 percent after a while. This study looks at a new idea, a metal polymer composite for the heat exchanger in a 15 liter domestic geyser. They keep the metal parts for the main heat transfer and to handle pressure, but add polymers like polypropylene, high-density polyethylene, and glass fiber reinforced polypropylene sulfide. These help with better insulation, resisting corrosion, and cutting down the weight overall. For the analysis, they set up equations for heat transfer through the composite walls, hoop stress in the structure, and Nusselt number correlations based on the Dean number for the helical coil. Then they solved them analytically. To check it out, CFD simulations were done with ANSYS Fluent, using a k omega SST model and a mesh of 1.8 million elements. This validated the thermal performance for different configurations. The results show a 31 percent drop in system weight. Standby heat loss goes down to 2.49 watts, which is an 89 percent improvement from the usual 22.4 watts. For the heating cycle, energy use is 193 watt-hours, saving 61 percent compared to traditional ones. The structural part with the SS304 inner tank has a safety factor of 3.22 under pressure, so that holds up fine. Taken all together, this metal polymer setup feels like a solid technical option, and economically, it might make sense for next-generation compact geysers.

 

Keywords: Metal polymer composite; compact geyser; thermal dissipation; PTC heating element; helical coil heat exchanger; polymer insulation; CFD simulation; standby heat loss; GF-PPS; energy efficiency

[This article belongs to Special Issue under section in Journal of Polymer & Composites (jopc)]

How to cite this article:
Neha Dhanawade, Shatakshi Joshi, Purvi Wankhade, Vedant Bhalerao, Pramod Kothmire. Thermal Dissipation Performance of Metal–Polymer Composite Heat Exchanger for Enhanced Thermal Management in Compact Electric Geysers. Journal of Polymer & Composites. 2026; 14(02):618-651.
How to cite this URL:
Neha Dhanawade, Shatakshi Joshi, Purvi Wankhade, Vedant Bhalerao, Pramod Kothmire. Thermal Dissipation Performance of Metal–Polymer Composite Heat Exchanger for Enhanced Thermal Management in Compact Electric Geysers. Journal of Polymer & Composites. 2026; 14(02):618-651. Available from: https://journals.stmjournals.com/jopc/article=2026/view=241998


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Special Issue Subscription Original Research
Volume 14
Special Issue 02
Received 16/04/2026
Accepted 28/04/2026
Published 08/05/2026
Publication Time 22 Days
32

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