A modified hydrodynamic model for pool boiling CHF considering the effects of heater size and nucleation site density

Abstract

Boiling is commonly used in daily life and is an efficient heat removal method. During pool boiling, the critical heat flux (CHF) establishes the upper limit of efficient heat removal. Although, numerous studies have explored CHF, its exact mechanisms remain ambiguous. The hydrodynamic instability model is the most prominent CHF model, but it fails to explain the evident dependence of CHF on surface properties. The authors proposed modifying the hydrodynamic model to account for how nucleation site density and finite heater size affect the CHF. The experimental CHF values obtained from evaluating various types of surfaces qualitatively agreed with the predictions of the modified hydrodynamic model. This suggests that the CHFs on these surfaces were due to the hydrodynamic limit. (C) 2015 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.