Bubble Dynamics and Heat Transfer on Biphilic Surfaces: Experiments and Numerical Simulation

Wettability is known to play a major role in enhancing pool boiling heat transfer. In this context bioinspired surfaces can bring significant advantages in pool boiling applications. This work addresses a numerical investigation of bubble growth and detachment on a biphilic surface pattern, namely in a superhydrophobic region surrounded by a hydrophilic region. Surface characteristics resemble bio-inspired solutions explored in our research group, mainly considering the main topographical characteristics. This numerical approach is intended to provide additional information to an experimental approach, allowing to obtain temperature, pressure and velocity fields in and around the bubble, which help to describe bubble dynamics. The model was validated based on experimental data obtained with extensive image processing of synchronized high-speed video and high-speed thermographic images. The results obtained here clearly evidence that combining enhanced direct numerical simulations with high-resolution transient experimental measurements is a promising tool to describe the complex and intricate hydrodynamic and heat transfer phenomena governing pool boiling on heated biphilic surfaces.