Bubble dynamics and mechanistic boiling heat transfer prediction on a scored copper surface

In this study, pool boiling heat transfer of de-ionized water was experimentally studied on a scored copper surface at a heat-flux range of 0 - 60 W/cm2. Bubble dynamics in an isolated bubble region were carefully investigated, including bubble departure diameters, bubble departure frequencies, and active nucleation site densities. The bubble dynamics were compared with available models, indicating the suitable models regarding the present experimental results. Then, based on the bubble dynamics, a mechanistic heat transfer model, developed in our previous studies, was employed to predict the present boiling curve. In the mechanistic model, heat fluxes from natural convection, transient heat conduction, and microlayer evaporation were incorporated.

Bubble Lifecycle During Heterogeneous Nucleate Boiling

Heterogeneous nucleate boiling over a flat surface has been studied through complete numerical simulations. During the growth and departure of the vapor bubble, the interface is tracked following a coupled level-set and volume of fluid approach. A microlayer evaporation model similar to Sato and Niceno [“A depletable microlayer model for nucleate pool boiling,” J. Comput. Phys. 300, 20–52 (2015)] has been deployed in this investigation. A detailed study of the changes in microlayer structure as a result of different modes of boiling scenario has been performed. The departure diameter is found to increase with an increase in substrate superheat. The predicted departure diameter has been compared with the available experimental and analytical results. A power-law curve has been obtained for depicting the growth rate of bubble depending on the degree of superheat at the wall. The space–time averaged wall-heat flux at different values of superheat temperature of substrate is obtained. Bubble growth during subcooled boiling at a low and intermediate subcooled degree has been observed through direct numerical simulations. The variations in bubble dynamics after departure in saturated and subcooled liquid states have been compared.

Enhanced Macroconvection Mechanism With Separate Liquid–Vapor Pathways to Improve Pool Boiling Performance

Understanding heat transfer mechanisms is crucial in developing new enhancement techniques in pool boiling. In this paper, the available literature on fundamental mechanisms and their role in some of the outstanding enhancement techniques is critically evaluated. Such an understanding is essential in our quest to extend the critical heat flux (CHF) while maintaining low wall superheats. A new heat transfer mechanism related to macroconvection is introduced and its ability to simultaneously enhance both CHF and heat transfer coefficient (HTC) is presented. In the earlier works, increasing nucleation site density by coating a porous layer, providing hierarchical multiscale structures with different surface energies, and nanoscale surface modifications were some of the widely used techniques which relied on enhancing transient conduction, microconvection, microlayer evaporation, or contact line evaporation mechanisms. The microconvection around a bubble is related to convection currents in its immediate vicinity, referred to as the influence region (within one to two times the departing bubble diameter). Bubble-induced convection, which is active beyond the influence region on a heater surface, is introduced in this paper as a new macroconvection mechanism. It results from the macroconvection currents created by the motion of bubbles as they grow and depart from the nucleating sites along a specific trajectory. Directing these bubble-induced macroconvection currents so as to create separate vapor–liquid pathways provides a highly effective enhancement mechanism, improving both CHF and HTC. The incoming liquid as well as the departing bubbles in some cases play a major role in enhancing the heat transfer. Significant performance improvements have been reported in the literature based on enhanced macroconvection contribution. One such microstructure has yielded a CHF of 420 W/cm2 with a wall superheat of only 1.7 °C in pool boiling with water at atmospheric pressure. Further enhancements that can be expected through geometrical refinements and integration of different techniques with macroconvection enhancement mechanism are discussed here.