Numerical modeling of vapor condensation over a wide range of non-condensable gas concentrations

Abstract

This paper presents a numerical model to study the process of vapor condensation on surfaces characterized by film-wise condensation with the presence of Non-condensable gases (NCG). State variables in both the condensate film and the diffusion layer were solved separately and the condensation interface was used to couple the two solutions. The solution of the condensate film was obtained using well-established solutions of laminar film condensation of pure vapor. In contrast to other models surveyed, this work provides a inexpensive and accurate predictions of heat and mass transfer characteristics. We validated the work against two classical condensation problems. The model was first validated against empirical correlations and experimental work, resulting in a very good agreement. We then assessed the applicability of ignoring the condensate film effect, as performed in previous models, on the condensation processes by observing the thermal resistances of both the condensate film and diffusion layer. Results indicated that for the studied cases of NCG mass fractions above 20%, the condensate thermal resistance was at least an order of magnitude lower than that of the diffusion layer. However, the two thermal resistances seem to approach each other as NCG mass fraction becomes smaller. On another front, we observed that models that ignore the condensate film thermal resistance underestimate the interfacial temperature albeit accurately predicting the overall heat transfer rate. To simulate even lower NCG mass fractions, we validated our model to the classical analytical work of Sparrow and co-workers. Results showed a striking agreement between the two solutions at different NCG mass fractions (0.5%–10%) and subcooling degrees (5∘F–40∘F). Finally, we found a good agreement between results of our model and the heat/mass transfer analogy. The heat/mass transfer analogy is a semi-empirical method therefore, is limited to the existing correlations and their uncertainties. On the other hand, our model does not use any empiricism and relies on the available solutions of laminar condensate film of pure vapor in predicting the liquid side heat transfer coefficient.