Chen Fang^*, Milnes David, Anita Rogacs, Kenneth Goodson

Frontiers in Heat and Mass Transfer, Vol.1, No.1, pp. 1-11, 2010, DOI:10.5098/hmt.v1.1.3002

Abstract Vapor-venting microchannel heat exchangers are promising because they address the problems of high pressure drop, flow instability, and local dryout that are common in conventional two-phase microchannel heat sinks. We present a 3D numerical simulation of the vapor-venting process in a rectangular microchannel bounded on one side by a hydrophobic porous membrane for phase-separation. The simulation is based on the volume of fluid (VOF) method together with models for interphase mass transfer and capillary force. Simulation shows the vapor-venting mechanism can effectively mitigate the vapor accumulation issue, reduce the pressure drop, and suppress the local dry-out in the microchannel. Pressure… More >

Pankaj Saha^a, Gautam Biswas^a,b,*

Frontiers in Heat and Mass Transfer, Vol.2, No.3, pp. 1-5, 2011, DOI:10.5098/hmt.v2.3.3008

Abstract Detailed flow structure in turbulent flows through a rectangular channel containing built-in winglet type vortex generators have been analyzed by means of solutions of the full Navier-Stokes equations using a Large-Eddy Simulation (LES) technique. The Reynolds number of investigation is 6000. The geometry of interest consists of a rectangular channel with a built-in winglet pair on the bottom wall with common-flow-down arrangement. The winglet pair induces streamwise longitudinal vortices behind it. The vortices swirl the flow around the axis parallel to the mainstream direction and disrupt the growth of thermal boundary layer entailing enhancement of heat transfer. The influence of… More >

M. Yakut Ali^a,*, Fanghao Yang^a, Ruixian Fang^a, Chen Li^a, Jamil Khan^a,†

Frontiers in Heat and Mass Transfer, Vol.2, No.3, pp. 1-11, 2011, DOI:10.5098/hmt.v2.3.3003

Abstract This study experimentally investigates single phase heat transfer and pressure drop characteristics of a shallow rectangular microchannel heat sink whose surface is enhanced with copper nanowires (CuNWs). The hydraulic diameter of the channel is 672 μm and the bottom wall is coated with Cu nanowires (CuNWs) of 200 nm in diameter and 50 μm in length. CuNWs are grown on the Cu heat sink by electrochemical synthesis technique which is inexpensive and readily scalable. The heat transfer and pressure drop results of CuNWs enhanced heat sink are compared with that of bare copper surface heat sink using deionized (DI) water… More >

H.E. Dillon, A.F. Emery^†, A.M. Mescher, O. Sprenger, S.R. Edwards

Frontiers in Heat and Mass Transfer, Vol.2, No.2, pp. 1-14, 2011, DOI:10.5098/hmt.v2.2.3002

Abstract The stability of free convection in an annulus is governed by the boundary conditions on the inner and outer walls of the annulus and the upper and lower boundaries. This paper explores the effect of free convection on the inner surface of the annulus, where the boundary conditions for the outer wall and the upper and lower boundaries are controlled. The temperature is measured in the center of the air cavity and just below the surface of the inner annular boundary. Experimental results are shown for a radius ratio of 0.40, aspect ratio of 20.7. These more recent experimental results… More >

Oronzio Manca^*, Sergio Nardini, Daniele Ricci

Frontiers in Heat and Mass Transfer, Vol.2, No.1, pp. 1-8, 2011, DOI:10.5098/hmt.v2.1.3007

Abstract Convective heat transfer may be enhanced passively by adopting rough surfaces. Ribs break the laminar sub-layer and create local turbulence in the channel, reducing thermal resistance and enhancing the heat transfer. However, higher losses are expected. In this paper a numerical investigation is carried out on air forced convection in a rectangular ribbed channel. A three-dimensional model is developed to study the effect of the angle between the fluid flow direction and the ribbed surface, provided with rectangular turbulators, in the turbulent flow. Simulations s that Nusselt numbers as well as the pressure drops increase as the inclination angles increase. More >

Muhammad M. Rahman^*, Phaninder Injeti

Frontiers in Heat and Mass Transfer, Vol.2, No.1, pp. 1-9, 2011, DOI:10.5098/hmt.v2.1.3003

Abstract This paper presents the effects of protrusions on heat transfer in a microtube and in a two-dimensional microchannel of finite wall thickness. The effects of protrusion shape, size, and number were investigated. Calculations were done for incompressible flow of a Newtonian fluid with developing momentum and thermal boundary layers under uniform and discrete heating conditions. It was found that the local Nusselt number near a protrusion changes significantly with the variations of Reynolds number, height, width, and distance between protrusions, and the distribution of discrete heat sources. The results presented in the paper demonstrate that protrusions can be used advantageously… More >

Hai Trieu Phan^b, Nadia Caney^a,†, Philippe Marty^a, Stéphane Colasson^b, Jérôme Gavillet^b

Frontiers in Heat and Mass Transfer, Vol.2, No.1, pp. 1-6, 2011, DOI:10.5098/hmt.v2.1.3002

Abstract Experiments were performed to study the effects of surface wettability on flow boiling of water at atmospheric pressure. The test channel is a single rectangular channel 0.5 mm high, 5 mm wide and 180 mm long. The mass flux was set at 100 and 120 kg/m² s and the base heat flux was varied from 30 to 80 kW/m². Water enters the test channel under subcooled conditions. The sample surfaces are titanium (Ti) and diamond-like carbon (DLC) surfaces having a contact angle of 49° and 63°, respectively. The experimental results show different flow patterns that impact the heat transfer significantly.… More >

P. K. Das^*, S. Chakraborty, S. Bhaduri

Frontiers in Heat and Mass Transfer, Vol.3, No.1, pp. 1-17, 2012, DOI:10.5098/hmt.v3.1.3008

Abstract A state of the art review of critical heat flux during flow boiling through mini and microchannels has been provided based on the open literature. This review mainly examines three aspects, namely the experimental investigations, the available correlations and the state of prediction using those correlations and finally the proposed physical mechanisms as well as the theoretical models. Before discussing the specific literature on microchannels, a brief overview of critical heat flux for pool and flow boiling is provided. The review has been concluded with a summary of the available information on this topic and the need for future research. More >

Sira Saisorn^a,b, Somchai Wongwises^b,c,∗

Frontiers in Heat and Mass Transfer, Vol.3, No.1, pp. 1-7, 2012, DOI:10.5098/hmt.v3.1.3007

Abstract Two-phase pressure drop during flow boiling has been studied for several decades. Obviously, the publications available on micro-channels are relatively small compared with those for ordinarily sized channels. Although the use of micro-channels yields several advantages, the pressure drop taking p lace in these extremely small channels is higher than that in the ordinarily sized channels because of the increased wall friction. The knowledge of the two-phase pressure drop characteristics in addition to heat transfer phenomena is essential to the design and evaluation of the micro-systems. In this paper, recent research on the flow boiling pressure drop in micro-scale channels… More >

Sira Saisorn^a,b, Somchai Wongwises^b,c,*

Frontiers in Heat and Mass Transfer, Vol.3, No.1, pp. 1-15, 2012, DOI:10.5098/hmt.v3.1.3006

Abstract A summary of recent research on flow boiling in micro-channels is provided in this article. This review aims to survey and identify new findings arising in this important area, which may contribute to optimum design and process control of high performance miniature devices comprising extremely small channels. Several criteria for defining a micro-channel are presented at first and the recent works on micro-scale flow boiling are subsequently described into two parts including flow visualization and two-phase heat transfer. The results obtained from a number of p revious studies show that the flow behaviours and heat transfer mechanisms in micro-channels deviate… More >