A high-fidelity approach towards simulation of pool boiling

Abstract

A novel numerical approach is developed to simulate the multiscale problem of pool-boiling phase change. The particular focus is to develop a simulation technique that is capable of predicting the heat transfer and hydrodynamic characteristics of nucleate boiling and the transition to critical heat flux on surfaces of arbitrary shape and roughness distribution addressing a critical need to design enhanced boiling heat transfer surfaces. The macro-scale of the phase change and bubble dynamics is addressed through employing off-the-shelf Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) methods for interface tracking and interphase mass and energy transfer. The micro-scale of the microlayer, which forms at early stage of bubble nucleation near the wall, is resolved through asymptotic approximation of the thin-film theory which provides a closed-form solution for the distribution of the micro-layer and its influence on the evaporation process. In addition, the sub-grid surface roughness is represented stochastically through probabilistic density functions and its role in bubble nucleation and growth is then represented based on the thermodynamics of nucleation process. This combination of deterministic CFD, local approximation, and stochastic representation allows the simulation of pool boiling on any surface with known roughness and enhancement characteristics. The numerical model is validated for dynamics and hydrothermal characteristics of a single nucleated bubble on a flat surface against available literature data. In addition, the prediction of pool-boiling heat transfer coefficient is verified against experimental measurements as well as reputable correlations for various roughness distributions and different surface orientations. Finally, the model is employed to demonstrate pool-boiling phenomenon on enhanced structures with reentrance cavities and to explore the effect of enhancement feature design on thermal and hydrodynamic characteristics of these surfaces.