Experimental and Theoretical Studies of Mist Jet Impingement Cooling

Abstract

Experimental data and analytical predictions for air/liquid mist jet cooling of small heat sources are presented. The mist jet was created using a coaxial jet atomizer, with a liquid jet of diameter 190 μm located on the axis of an annular air jet of diameter 2 mm. The impingement surface was a square of side 6.35 mm. Experimental data were obtained with mists of both methanol and water. Surface-averaged heat fluxes as high as 60 W/cm2 could be dissipated with the methanol/air mist while maintaining the target surface below 70°C. With the water/air mist, a heat flux of 60 W/cm2 could be dissipated with the target surface at 80°C. Major trends in the data and model predictions have been explained in terms of the underlying hydrodynamic and heat transfer phenomena.