SUBCOOLED BOILING IN THE ULTRASONIC FIELD (ON CAUSE OF MEB GENERATION)

Subcooled quasi-pool boiling for water, ethanol aqueous solutions of 10wt% and 50wt% and ethanol in ultrasonic field is performed for the upward flat heating surface of copper block with 10mm in diameter under the atmospheric condition. Tested liquid subcooling is 15K, 20K and 25K for water and aqueous solutions of ethanol and 20K, 30K and 40K for 100wt% ethanol. At 20K of liquid subcooling for water and ethanol aqueous solutions, no microbubble emission boiling (MEB) has been observed in quasi-pool boiling. Even if MEB occurred, the heat flux does not increase and it turns easily to film boiling. In ultrasonic field, MEB occurs remarkably and the heat flux increases higher than the ordinary critical heat flux as observed in highly subcooled boiling. The experimental results show that the ultrasonic vibration introduces the instability of interface of liquid and vapor and accelerate MEB at 20K of liquid subcooling for water and aqueous solutions of ethanol. At 15K of liquid subcooling for water and aqueous solutions, no effect of ultrasonic vibration is observed. At 25K of liquid subcooling, the ultrasonic vibration extends MEB region to higher superheat of heating surface for aqueous solutions of ethanol. The maximum heat flux in MEB decreases with increasing of ethanol concentration and becomes CHF for 100wt% ethanol. No effect of ultrasonic vibration on boiling is observed for the 100wt% ethanol in the present experiments.