Bubble Coalescence During Pool Boiling with Different Surface Characteristics

Abstract

This work investigates the bubble dynamics during pool boiling from isolated cavities on a horizontal silicon substrate with three surface coatings, silicon oxide, Perfluorodecyltrichlorosilane, and silica nanoparticles. The experiments were conducted with FC-72 under various superheat degrees. In the case of vertical coalescence, coalescences at the boundary between the departed bubble and the subsequent nucleated bubble were observed and analyzed. Vertical coalescence appears with lower superheat degrees on Perfluorodecyltrichlorosilane coated surfaces due to the faster initial bubble growth than on the other surfaces. However, the vertical coalescence has a limited effect on the bubble departure diameter, which is nearly kept constant at around 0.6 mm. In the case of horizontal coalescence, bubbles growing on the silica nanoparticles coated surface are able to coalesce for small cavity spacing with lower superheat degree than other surfaces. Coalescing bubbles from cavities spaced 0.50 mm apart can detach just after coalescence, while for a shorter spacing of 0.25 mm, bubbles remain attached to the surface and further growth is needed for their detachment. Based on the analysis of energy removal per unit of area, the optimal heat transfer performance may be achieved when the cavities spacing is approximate to the single bubble departure diameter.