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Laminar-film condensation/evaporation on a vertically fluted surface

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  21 April 2006

R. E. Johnson  and
A. T. Conlisk
R. E. Johnson
Affiliation:
Department of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801, USA
A. T. Conlisk
Affiliation:
Department of Mechanical Engineering, The Ohio State University, Columbus OH 43210, USA
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Abstract

Laminar-film flow with condensation or evaporation on a vertical fluted cylinder is examined. A kinematic wave equation describing the evolution of the film profile is obtained and solutions presented. The film profile evolves owing to axial, gravity-driven flow and transverse, surface-tension-driven flow from the crests to the valleys of the fluted cylinder. In the case of condensation the majority of the film reaches a uniform thickness and consequently there is a significant improvement in heat transfer compared with the classical unfluted result where the film thickens in an unbounded fashion. For evaporation a critical value of a parameter which involves the ratio of the Weber number and the gradient of the surface curvature is found below which the film totally drys out and above which the fluid funnels into tapering rivulets and only partially drys out. Typical dry-out lines are presented. For short cylinders the evaporative mass transfer for a fluted cylinder is slightly greater than that predicted for an unfluted case. However, when the cylinder is long the mass transfer is far less for a fluted cylinder owing to the reduction in film area associated with partial film dry out.

Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Fluid Mechanics , Volume 184 , November 1987 , pp. 245 - 266
Copyright
© 1987 Cambridge University Press

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