Investigation of bubbles interaction and coalescence boiling in the boiling heat transfer process

Abstract

This paper presents a new approach to investigate the bubbles movements and their interaction in the boiling heat transfer proess. Based on the study of the wake flow of single rising bubble, the interaction of bubble pairs, such as interaction and coalescenceboiling, is experimentally and numerically simulated. The validity of the numerical simulation was verified by the experimental pictures captured by high-speed CCD camera. The wakes of two bubbles was revealed by obtatined velocity field, and the interaction between two bubbles was analyzed in fluid dynamics. The simulations shows that the coalescence of bubbles may happen when one bubble enters the wake influence area of the main bubble. The velocity vector field shows that wake flow of the bubble is the major influencing factor determining the interaction between bubbles.