Boiling Heat Transfer and Pressure Drop of a Refrigerant Flowing Vertically Downward in a Small Diameter Tube

Abstract

Experiments were performed on boiling heat transfer and pressure drop of a refrigerant R410A flowing vertically downward in a copper smooth tube of 1.0 mm inside diameter for the development of a high-performance heat exchanger using small diameter tubes for air conditioning systems. Local heat transfer coefficients were measured in a range of mass fluxes from 30 to 200 kg/(m²•s), heat fluxes from 1 to 16 kW/m² and quality from 0.1 to over 1 at evaporation temperature of 10°C. Pressure drops were measured and flow patterns were observed at mass fluxes from 30 to 200 kg/(m²•s) and quality from 0.1 to 0.9. The characteristics of frictional pressure drop, heat transfer coefficient and dryout qualities were clarified by comparing the measurements with the data for the vertically upward flow previously obtained.