Stability investigation on the thin films in capillary

Abstract

The stability of the thin liquid film in a capillary is important to the phase-change heat transfer process in miniature or micro structures. From the basic equations for motion and heat transfer at the interface of the film, its stability is theoretically studied. With evaluation of the effects and relative magnitudes of various driving forces and with the use of long-wave theory in addition to linear stability analysis, the controlling equations are simplified and an evolution equation for the film’s thickness is obtained. Detailed analysis on the evolution equation shows that instability occurs first in the meniscus region and the instability condition varies with boundary conditions, geometrical scales and thermal properties. The numerical results agree well with earlier ones with some favorable extensions and improvements.