Apparatus and method for increasing boiling heat transfer therein
AssigneePurdue Research Foundation
InventorsTae Young Kim, Suresh V. Garimella
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An apparatus and a method of enhancing boiling heat transfer therein capable of increasing both the critical heat flux and nucleate boiling heat transfer of a working fluid. The method includes placing free particles on a surface so as to define narrow corner gaps and cavities at interfaces between the particles and the surface and heating the surface while the surface is contacted by the working fluid to bring the working fluid to a boil, with the result that bubble nucleation is facilitated and nucleate boiling heat transfer from the surface is increased.
Claims24
A method of increasing boiling heat transfer from a surface, the method comprising:
- placing free particles on a surface so that the free particles are not affixed to the surface and are free to move on and relative to the surface, the free particles defining narrow corner gaps and cavities at interfaces between the free particles and the surface;
- and
- heating the surface while the surface is contacted by a working fluid to bring the working fluid to a boil and cause the free particles to continuously move on and relative to the surface, at least some of the free particles remaining in contact with the surface and the narrow corner gaps and cavities thereof facilitating bubble nucleation and increasing nucleate boiling heat transfer from the surface;
- wherein the free particles comprise at least a first group of the free particles having first diameters and at least a second group of the free particles having second diameters that are different from the first diameters, wherein the first diameters are sized to increase the critical heat flux of the working fluid and the second diameters are sized to decrease the temperature necessary to facilitate bubble nucleation in the working fluid.
A method of increasing boiling heat transfer from a surface, the method comprising:
- placing free particles on a surface so that the free particles are not affixed to the surface and are free to move on and relative to the surface, the free particles defining narrow corner gaps and cavities at interfaces between the free particles and the surface;
- and
- heating the surface while the surface is contacted by a working fluid to bring the working fluid to a boil and cause the free particles to continuously move on and relative to the surface, the narrow corner gaps and cavities facilitating bubble nucleation and increasing nucleate boiling heat transfer from the surface;
- wherein the free particles comprise at least a first group of the free particles having first diameters and at least a second group of the free particles having second diameters that are different from the first diameters, wherein the first diameters are sized to increase the critical heat flux of the working fluid and the second diameters are sized to decrease the temperature necessary to facilitate bubble nucleation in the working fluid.
An apparatus comprising:
- a heated surface;
- a working liquid in contact with the surface;
- and
- free particles submerged in the working fluid and located on the surface but not affixed to the surface so that the free particles are free to move on and relative to the surface, the free particles defining narrow corner gaps and cavities at interfaces between the free particles and the surface, wherein the working fluid is boiling as a result of heat transfer from the surface to the working fluid and causes the free particles to continuously move on and relative to the surface, and wherein bubble nucleation and an increase in nucleate boiling heat transfer from the surface are facilitated by the narrow corner gaps and cavities of at least some of the free particles that remain in contact with the surface;
- wherein the free particles comprise at least a first group of the free particles having first diameters and at least a second group of the free particles having second diameters that are different from the first diameters, wherein the first diameters are sized to increase the critical heat flux of the working fluid and the second diameters are sized to decrease the temperature necessary to facilitate bubble nucleation in the working fluid.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.