Open Access

ARTICLE

Experimental and Numerical Analysis of the Influence of Microchannel Size and Structure on Boiling Heat Transfer

Ningbo Guo, Xianming Gao^*, Duanling Li, Jixing Zhang, Penghui Yin, Mengyi Hua

School of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering, Shaanxi University of Science and Technology, Xi’an, 710021, China

* Corresponding Author: Xianming Gao. Email:

(This article belongs to the Special Issue: Thermofluid Topology Optimization)

Computer Modeling in Engineering & Sciences 2023, 136(3), 3061-3082. https://doi.org/10.32604/cmes.2023.026657

Received 19 September 2022; Accepted 28 November 2022; Issue published 09 March 2023

Abstract

Computational fluid dynamics was used and a numerical simulation analysis of boiling heat transfer in microchannels with three depths and three cross-sectional profiles was conducted. The heat transfer coefficient and bubble generation process of three microchannel structures with a width of 80 μm and a depth of 40, 60, and 80 μm were compared during the boiling process, and the factors influencing bubble generation were studied. A visual test bench was built, and test substrates of different sizes were prepared using a micro-nano laser. During the test, the behavior characteristics of the bubbles on the boiling surface and the temperature change of the heated wall were collected with a high-speed camera and a temperature sensor. It was found that the microchannel with a depth of 80 μm had the largest heat transfer coefficient and shortest bubble growth period, the rectangular channel had a larger peak heat transfer coefficient and a lower frequency of bubble occurrence, while the V-shaped channel had the shortest growth period, i.e., the highest frequency of bubble occurrence, but its heat transfer coefficient was smaller than that of the rectangular channel.

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Keywords

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