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Updated: Jul 18, 2026

Measurements of Local Instantaneous Convective Heat Transfer in a Pipe - Single and Two-phase Flow
Published on: April 30, 2018
Analysis of heat and mass transfer during condensation over a porous substrate
R Balasubramaniam1, V Nayagam, M M Hasan
1National Center for Space Exploration Research, NASA Glenn Research Center, Cleveland, Ohio 44135, USA. bala@grc.nasa.gov
Abstract:
Condensing heat exchangers are important in many space applications for thermal and humidity control systems. The International Space Station uses a cooled fin surface to condense moisture from humid air that is blown over it. The condensate and the air are "slurped" into a system that separates air and water by centrifugal forces. The use of a cooled porous substrate is an attractive alternative to the fin where condensation and liquid/gas separation can be achieved in a single step. We analyze the heat and mass transfer during condensation of moisture from flowing air over such a cooled, flat, porous substrate. A fully developed regime is investigated for coupled mass, momentum and energy transport in the gas phase, and momentum and energy transport in the condensate layer on the porous substrate and through the porous medium.
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