Phase change heat transfer of volatile droplets in acoustic field

Abstract

This study examines the evaporation dynamics of single and multi-component droplets acoustically levitated with cyclohexane and the heat transfer characteristics of the volatile droplets. At 100 vol% cyclohexane, acoustic levitation was used to observe freezing from the surface of the droplet. On the other hand, at 70 vol% cyclohexane, phase separation of cyclohexane and water was observed due to condensation of ambient water vapor generated by evaporation. The heat transfer performance of cyclohexane was evaluated and it was confirmed that the heat transfer coefficient obtained from the experimental results was higher than that considering the effect of convection. This suggests that convection around the droplet promotes phase change (evaporation and freezing) and phase separation.