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Updated: May 31, 2026
07:32
Pool-Boiling Heat-Transfer Enhancement on Cylindrical Surfaces with Hybrid Wettable Patterns
Published on: April 10, 2017
Infrared thermometry study of nanofluid pool boiling phenomena
Craig Gerardi1, Jacopo Buongiorno, Lin-Wen Hu
1Department of Nuclear Science and Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Ave,, Cambridge, MA 02139 USA. jacopo@mit.edu.
Nanoscale Research Letters
|June 30, 2011
Summary
Nanoparticles in boiling water reduced heat transfer but increased critical heat flux (CHF). A nanoparticle layer improved surface wettability, explaining lower bubble departure frequency and nucleation site density (NSD).
Area of Science:
- Thermodynamics and Heat Transfer
- Materials Science
Background:
- Pool boiling is crucial for heat transfer applications.
- Nanofluids offer potential for enhanced heat transfer but their boiling behavior is complex.
- Understanding nanoparticle effects on boiling at the microscale is essential.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate pool boiling phenomena in water-based nanofluids using diamond and silica nanoparticles.
- To obtain time- and space-resolved data on heat transfer coefficients and critical heat flux (CHF).
- To measure fundamental boiling parameters like bubble departure diameter, frequency, and nucleation site density (NSD).
Main Methods:
- Utilized infrared thermometry for precise measurements.
- Employed a thin, resistively heated indium-tin-oxide surface on a sapphire substrate.
- Studied low concentration nanofluids (<0.1 vol.%) and compared with pure water.
Main Results:
- Nanofluids showed a 50% deterioration in nucleate boiling heat transfer and a 100% increase in CHF.
- Observed lower bubble departure frequency and nucleation site density (NSD) in nanofluids.
- A porous nanoparticle layer formed on the heater, improving surface wettability.
Conclusions:
- Improved surface wettability due to nanoparticle deposition correlates with reduced bubble departure frequency and NSD.
- These microscale changes explain the macroscopic heat transfer deterioration and CHF enhancement in nanofluids.
- Findings provide insights into nucleate boiling models and nanofluid applications.
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