In this numerical study, the coalescence characteristic of a coaxial bubble pair and its influence on the liquid-to-wall convection heat transfer are investigated under different magnetic field intensities, magnetic field directions, and wall confinement ratios by adopting the volume of fluid (VOF) method. The results reveal that in the direction of heat flow, the toroidal vortices around the bubbles are dampened and even vanish completely after applying the spanwise magnetic fields, while the toroidal vortices only get away from the hot wall in the presence of the transverse magnetic fields. Correspondingly, the convective heat transfer on the hot wall is suppressed to varying degrees under the magnetic fields in different directions. The inhibitory action of the magnetic field on the heat transfer becomes stronger with the decreasing separation distance (s*) between the coaxial bubbles. The total increment of heat transfer (Nu*) is a decreased function of Hartmann number (Ha) and that decreased amplitude of Nu* under the spanwise magnetic field is nearly twice that of the transverse magnetic field. Additionally, the variations of Nu* are independent of the wall confinement ratio (Cr) for Ha < 400, while the Cr has an obvious effect on Nu* for Ha > 400 and the values of Nu* are considerably smaller at a larger Cr. The results about the effect of the magnetic field and wall confinement on the two-phase heat transfer can be referenced in the cooling system design of fusion reactor.
Read full abstract