Corey Kruse

Extraordinary shifts of the Leidenfrost temperature from multiscale micro/nanostructured surfaces.

In the present work, the effects of surface chemistry and micro/nanostructuring on the Leidenfrost temperature are experimentally investigated. The functional surfaces were fabricated on a 304 stainless steel surface via femtosecond laser surface processing (FLSP). The droplet lifetime experimental method was employed to determine the Leidenfrost temperature for both machine-polished and textured surfaces. A precision dropper was used to control the droplet size to 4.2 μL and surface temperatures were measured by means of an embedded thermocouple. Extraordinary shifts in the Leidenfrost temperatures, as high as 175 °C relative to the polished surface, were observed with the laser-processed surfaces. These extraordinary shifts were attributed to nanoporosity, reduction in contact angle, intermittent liquid/solid contacts, and capillary wicking actions resulting from the presence of self-assembled nanoparticles formed on the surfaces. In addition to the shift in the Leidenfrost temperature, significant enhancement of the heat transfer in the film boiling regime was also observed for the laser-processed surfaces; water droplet evaporation times were reduced by up to 33% for a surface temperature of 500 °C.

Enhanced pool-boiling heat transfer and critical heat flux on femtosecond laser processed stainless steel surfaces

In this paper, we present an experimental investigation of pool boiling heat transfer on multiscale (micro/nano) functionalized metallic surfaces. Heat transfer enhancement in metallic surfaces is very important for large scale high heat flux applications like in the nuclear power industry. The multiscale structures were fabricated via a femtosecond laser surface process (FLSP) technique, which forms self-organized mound-like microstructures covered by layers of nanoparticles. Using a pool boiling experimental setup with deionized water as the working fluid, both the heat transfer coefficients and critical heat flux were investigated. A polished reference sample was found to have a critical heat flux of 91 W/cm2 at 40 °C of superheat and a maximum heat transfer coefficient of 23,000 W/m2 K. The processed samples were found to have a maximum critical heat flux of 142 W/cm2 at 29 °C and a maximum heat transfer coefficient of 67,400 W/m2 K. It was found that the enhancement of the critical heat flux was directly related to the wetting and wicking ability of the surface which acts to replenish the evaporating liquid and delay critical heat flux. The heat transfer coefficients were also found to increase when the surface area ratio was increased as well as the microstructure peak-to-valley height. Enhanced nucleate boiling is the main heat transfer mechanism, and is attributed to an increase in surface area and nucleation site density.

Self-propelled droplets on heated surfaces with angled self-assembled micro/nanostructures

Directional and ratchet-like functionalized surfaces can induce liquid transport without the use of an external force. In this paper, we investigate the motion of liquid droplets near the Leidenfrost temperature on functionalized self-assembled asymmetric microstructured surfaces. The surfaces, which have angled microstructures, display unidirectional properties. The surfaces are fabricated on stainless steel through the use of a femtosecond laser-assisted process. Through this process, mound-like microstructures are formed through a combination of material ablation, fluid flow, and material redeposition. In order to achieve the asymmetry of the microstructures, the femtosecond laser is directed at an angle with respect to the sample surface. Two surfaces with microstructures angled at 45° and 10° with respect to the surface normal were fabricated. Droplet experiments were carried out with deionized water and a leveled hot plate to characterize the directional and self-propelling properties of the surfaces. It was found that the droplet motion direction is opposite of that for a surface with conventional ratchet microstructures reported in the literature. The new finding could not be explained by the widely accepted mechanism of asymmetric vapor flow. A new mechanism for a self-propelled droplet on asymmetric three-dimensional self-assembled microstructured surfaces is proposed.

Enhancing vapor generation at a liquid-solid interface using micro/nanoscale surface structures fabricated by femtosecond laser surface processing

Femtosecond Laser Surface Processing (FLSP) is a versatile technique for the fabrication of a wide variety of micro/nanostructured surfaces with tailored physical and chemical properties. Through control over processing conditions such as laser fluence, incident pulse count, polarization, and incident angle, the size and density of both micrometer and nanometer-scale surface features can be tailored. Furthermore, the composition and pressure of the environment both during and after laser processing have a substantial impact on the final surface chemistry of the target material. FLSP is therefore a powerful tool for optimizing interfacial phenomena such as wetting, wicking, and phasetransitions associated with a vapor/liquid/solid interface. In the present study, we utilize a series of multiscale FLSPgenerated surfaces to improve the efficiency of vapor generation on a structured surface. Specifically, we demonstrate that FLSP of stainless steel 316 electrode surfaces in an alkaline electrolysis cell results in increased efficiency of the water-splitting reaction used to generate hydrogen. The electrodes are fabricated to be superhydrophilic (the contact angle of a water droplet on the surface is less than 5 degrees). The overpotential of the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) is measured using a 3-electrode configuration with a structured electrode as the working electrode. The enhancement is attributed to several factors including increased surface area, increased wettability, and the impact of micro/nanostructures on the bubble formation and release. Special emphasis is placed on identifying and isolating the relative impacts of the various contributions.

Enhanced pool-boiling heat transfer and critical heat flux using femtosecond laser surface processing

In this paper, we present the experimental investigation of pool boiling heat transfer on multiscale (micro/nano) functionalized metallic surfaces. The multiscale structures were fabricated via a femtosecond laser surface process (FLSP) technique which forms mound-like microstructures covered by layers of nanoparticles. Using a pool boiling experimental setup with deionized water as the working fluid, both the heat transfer coefficient and critical heat flux were investigated. The polished reference sample was found to have a critical heat flux of 91 W/cm2 at 40 °C of superheat and a maximum heat transfer coefficient of 23,000 W/m2-K. The processed sample was found to have a critical heat flux of 122 W/cm2 at 18 °C superheat and a maximum heat transfer coefficient of 67,400 W/m2-K. Flow visualization revealed nucleate boiling to be the main two-phase heat transfer mechanism. The overall heat transfer performance of the metallic multiscale structured surface has been attributed to both augmented heat transfer surface area and enhanced nucleate boiling regime. On the other hand, increase in the critical heat flux can be attributed to the superhydrophilic nature of the laser processed surface and the presence of nanoparticle layers.

Effects of droplet diameter on the Leidenfrost temperature of laser processed multiscale structured surfaces

In this paper, an experimental investigation of the effects of droplet diameters on the Leidenfrost temperature and its shifts has been carried out. Tests were conducted on a 304 stainless steel polished surface and a stainless steel surface which was processed by a femtosecond laser to form Above Surface Growth (ASG) nano/microstructures. To determine the Leidenfrost temperatures, the droplet lifetime method was employed for both the polished and processed surfaces. A precision dropper was used to vary the size of droplets from 1.5 to 4 millimeters. The Leidenfrost temperature was shown to display shifts as high as 85 °C on the processed surface over the range of droplet sizes, as opposed to a 45 °C shift on the polished surface. The difference between the shifts was attributed to the nature of the force balance between dynamic pressure of droplets and vapor pressure of the insulating vapor layer.

EFFECTS OF FEMTOSECOND LASER SURFACE PROCESSED NANOPARTICLE LAYERS ON POOL BOILING HEAT TRANSFER PERFORMANCE

An experimental investigation of the effects of layers of nanoparticles formed during femtosecond laser surface processing (FLSP) on pool boiling heat transfer performance has been conducted. Five different stainless steel 304 samples with slightly different surface features were fabricated through FLSP, and pool boiling heat transfer experiments were carried out to study the heat transfer characteristics of each surface. The experiments showed that the layer(s) of nanoparticles developed during the FLSP processes, which overlay FLSP self-organized microstructures, can either improve or degrade boiling heat transfer coefficients (HTC) depending on the overall thickness of the layer(s). This nanoparticle layer thickness is an indirect result of the type of microstructure created. The HTCs were found to decrease with increasing nanoparticle layer thickness. This trend has been attributed to added thermal resistance. Using a focused ion beam milling process and transmission electron microscopy (TEM), the physical and chemical properties of the nanoparticle layers were characterized and used to explain the observed heat transfer results. Results suggest that there is an optimal nanoparticle layer thickness and material composition such that both the HTCs and critical heat flux (CHF) are enhanced.

Study of secondary pool boiling effects with functionalized surfaces created via Femtosecond Laser Surface Processing

A pool boiling phenomenon referred to as secondary boiling effects is discussed. Based on experimental trends and numerical simulations, a mechanism is proposed that identifies the parameters that lead to this phenomenon. Secondary boiling effects refer to a distinct decrease in the wall superheat temperature near the critical heat flux due to a significant increase in the heat transfer coefficient. Recent pool boiling heat transfer experiments on femtosecond laser processed Inconel and stainless steel multiscale surfaces consistently displayed secondary boiling effects. Through experimental and numerical studies, it was determined that secondary boiling effects are a result of both temperature drop along the microstructures and nucleation characteristic length scales. The temperature drop is a function of microstructure height and thermal conductivity. An increased microstructure height and a decreased thermal conductivity result in a significant temperature drop along the microstructures. This temperature drop becomes more pronounced at higher heat fluxes and along with the right nucleation characteristic length scales results in a change of the boiling dynamics. Nucleation spreads from the bottom of the microstructure valleys to the top resulting in a decreased surface superheat with increasing heat flux. This decrease in wall superheat at higher heat fluxes is reflected by a “hook back” of the traditional boiling curve and is thus referred to as secondary boiling effects. In addition, a boiling hysteresis during increasing and decreasing heat flux develops due to the secondary boiling effects. This hysteresis further validates the existence of secondary boiling effects.

Tailoring liquid/solid interfacial energy transfer: fabrication and application of multiscale metallic surfaces with engineered heat transfer and electrolysis properties via femtosecond laser surface processing techniques

Femtosecond Laser Surface Processing (FLSP) is a powerful technique for the fabrication of self-organized multiscale surface structures on metals that are critical for advanced control over energy transfer at a liquid/solid interface in applications such as electrolysis. The efficiency of the hydrogen evolution reaction on stainless steel 316 electrodes in a 1 molar potassium hydroxide solution is used to analyze the role of surface geometry to facilitate the phase conversion of the liquid to a gaseous state in the vicinity of the interface. It is found that the efficiency of the electrolysis process is directly related to the separation of micro-scale features on an electrode surface. The enhancement is attributed to the size of the valleys between microstructures controlling the contact between an evolving vapor bubble and the electrode surface. The results suggest an alternative pathway for the tailoring of interfacial energy transfer on structured surfaces separate from traditional benchmarks such as surface area and contact angle.

Controlling the Leidenfrost Temperature Through Laser-Assisted Surface Micro/Nano Texturing

In the present work, the effect of surface features and wettability on the Leidenfrost temperature are experimentally investigated. The surface features were fabricated on a 304 stainless steel surface using a femtosecond laser. This technique allows for a wide variety of surface microstructures (spikes, mounds, holes, and pyramids) to be created, ranging in size, shape, and spacing. Changing the fluence and shots of the laser produce different micro/nano textured surfaces. A smooth surface sample was fabricated as a reference surface with a measured Leidenfrost temperature as a benchmark. The droplet lifetime experimental method was employed to determine the Leidenfrost temperature for both the smooth and the textured surfaces. A precision dropper was used to control the droplet size to 4.2 microliters (diameter of 2.0mm) while surface temperatures were measured by means of an embedded thermocouple. In comparison to the smooth stainless steel surface, a shift in the Leidenfrost temperature, as high as 55 °C, was observed with the textured surface. The textured surface hasa high emissivity, compared to the smooth surface. As a result, in addition to the shift in the Leidenfrost temperature, significant enhancement of the film boiling heat transfer coefficients were also observed.Copyright