An experimental investigation on pressure drop of steam condensing in silicon microchannels

作者：Quan, Xiaojun; Cheng, Ping^*; Wu, Huiying

来源：International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer, 2008, 51(21-22): 5454-5458.

DOI：10.1016/j.ijheatmasstransfer.2008.03.028

• Microchannels
• Pressure drop
• Condensation
• Water vapor
• Matinelli-Chisholm constant
• Lockhart-Martinelli correlation

Experiments are carried out to study the two-phase pressure drop for water vapor condensation in four smooth trapezoidal silicon microchannels having hydraulic diameters of 109 mu m, 142 mu m, 151 mu m, and 259 Am, respectively. It is found that two-phase frictional pressure drops in the microchannels are greatly influenced by the hydraulic diameter, mass flux and vapor quality. The two-phase pressure drop data in microchannels are compared with existing correlations for macro- and mini-channels based on the homogenous model and the separated flow model to determine their applicability to condensing flows in microchannels. A modified correlation for the Matinelli-Chisholm constant, taking into consideration of surface tension and diameter effects, is developed in the form of the Lockhart-Martinelli correlation for the pressure drop in steam condensation in microchannels. The resulting condensation pressure drop correlation equation is within +/- 15% of the experimental data.

• 出版日期2008-10
• 单位上海交通大学