Condensation in microchannels – Surface tension dominated regime

Abstract

A theoretical model, developed by the authors, for condensation in microchannels takes account of the effects of gravity, streamwise shear stress on the condensate surface as well as the transverse pressure gradient due to surface tension in the presence of change in condensate surface curvature. Numerical results have been generated for various channel shapes, dimensions and inclinations and for various fluids, vapourto-surface temperature differences and vapour mass fluxes. It is found that, over a certain length of channel, the local mean (around the channel perimeter) heat-transfer coefficient is essentially independent of gravity (including inclination of the channel) and surface shear stress and depends only on surface tension. For the surface tension dominated regime an equation for the Nusselt number, as a function of a single dimensionless group analogous to that occurring in the simple Nusselt theory except that the gravity is replaced by surface tension, has been derived both on the basis of dimensional analysis and by approximate theory. The equation represents all of the data satisfactorily.