DEPARTMENT OF CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

STUDENT NAME: KHODANI RAMABULANA

STUDENT NUMBER: 21909068

COURSE: CELA

BOILING HEAT TRANSFER PRACTICAL REPORT

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SUMMARY

Purpose:

- To determine what type of boiling takes place

Equipment:

- Refrigerator
- Condenser
- Cooling water
- Thermometers
- Pressure gage
- Heater power

Process variables that remained constant:

- Condenser Pressure

Results

Convective boiling is the first type of boiling that occurred followed by nucleate boiling, then film
boiling. This all occurred as the heat input was continuously increasing.

Conclusion

convective boiling occurred at the beginning and It occurred once, nucleate boiling followed right after
and occurred longer followed by film boiling. This was all dependant on the heat power input.

The temperatures of the metal, liquid and vapour kept on increasing as the heat input increased, till a
certain point where their temperatures had a sudden decrease and started increasing once again

Recommendations

- Repeat the experiment to ensure improved accuracy of measurements.

- Always ensure there is enough cooling water for the experiment.
- Ensure that the electrical supply works efficiently.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

DESCRIPTION PAGE NO.

INTRODUCTION 3

THEORY 4
Figure 1 4
EXPERIMENTAL METHODS & 7
APPARATUS 7
Figure 8

RESULTS 9
Table 1 9
Figure 3 9
DISCUSSION 9
Figure 4 10

RECOMMENDATIONS & CONCLUSION 10

NOMECLATURE 11

REFFERENCES 12

APPENDICES 13
- CALCULATIONS

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INTRODUCTION

The purpose of the experiment is to determine what type of boiling is occurring in the experiment.

Boiling and condensation are vital links in the transfer of heat to a cooler region from a hot region in
countless applications, e.g.: thermal and nuclear power generation in steam plants, refrigeration,
refining, heat transmission, etc. when a liquid at saturation temperature is in contact with the surface
of a solid at a higher temperature, heat is transferred to the liquid and a phase change (evaporation)
of some of the liquid occurs. The nature and rate of this heat transfer changes considerably as the
temperature difference between the surface and the liquid is increased. Although ‘boiling’ is a process
familiar to everyone, the production of vapour bubbles is a very interesting and complex process. Due
to the surface tension, the vapour inside the bubble must be at a higher temperature that the
surrounding liquid. The pressure difference increases as the diameter of the bubble decreases and is
insignificant when the bubble is large.

The pressure inside a bubble is the vapour pressure corresponding with the temperature of the
surrounding liquid ;thus when no bubble exists it is possible for the liquid temperature in the region of
the heat transfer surface to be well above the temperature of the bulk of the liquid.

This report deals with 4 types of boiling namely, Consecutive boiling, Nucleate boiling, Film boiling
and Condensing heat transfer.

Boiling heat transfer plays an important role in a range of technological and industrial applications
such heat exchangers, refrigeration coolers of high-power electronics and nuclear reactors

The boiling of water is used as a method of making it potable by killing viruses and microbes that may
be present. Boiling water is also used in various cooking methods including steaming, boiling and
poaching.

Boiling heat transfer is a great mechanism to heat removal from a surface of which is already heated.
Exceptional transfer rates are achieved via phase changes that occurs due to the localized motion of
fluid interface.

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THEORY

Figure 1: Boiling Heat Transfer Unit

Description of the unit

A high watt density electric heating element in a copper sleeve submerged in R141b liquid is mounted
horizontally in a vertical glass chamber. The temperature of the copper sleeve is measured by a
thermocouple and digital indicator.

The electric input of the heater is controlled by phase angle controller, the actual heat transfer rate
being displayed on the digital wattmeter.

A controller incorporated in the temperature indicator switches off the electrical input if the
temperature of the heating surface exceeds a pre set value.

At the upper end of the chamber is the condenser, a nickel-plated coil of copper tube through which
cooling water flows. This coil condenses the vapour produced by the heat input and the liquid formed
returns to the bottom of the chamber for re-evaporation.

A condenser water flowmeter is used in conjunction with glass thermometers measuring the
condenser water temperatures, enables the rate of heat transfer at the condenser to be measured.
The logarithmic mean temperature difference during condensation may also determine.

Glass thermometers are also mounted inside the glass cylinder to indicate the temperature of the
liquid and vapour

Types of boiling

Convective boiling

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When the temperature of the surface heating is slightly hotter than the temperature of the liquid
saturation, the excess vapor pressure is unlikely to produce bubbles. The locally heated liquid
expands, and the convection currents transport it to the liquid-vapour interface evaporation takes
place and the thermal balance is restored. Therefore, evaporation takes place in this mode at a small
temperature difference and with no formation of bubbles.

Nucleate boiling

As the surface becomes hotter, the excess vapor pressure over the liquid pressure increases and
eventually bubbles are formed. These occur at nucleating points on the hot surface where minute gas
pockets, which are present in surface defects, form the nucleus for the formation of a bubble. As soon
as a bubble is formed, it spreads rapidly as the heated liquid evaporates into it. The buoyancy
separates the bubble from the surface, and another begins to form. Nucleate boiling is characterized
by the formation of vigorous bubbles and turbulence. Exceptionally high heat transfer rates and heat
coefficients with moderate temperature differences occur in nucleate boiling and, in practical
applications, boiling is nearly always in this mode.

Film boiling

Above the critical surface-liquid temperature difference, the surfaces become 'closed with vapor' and
the liquid cannot wet the surface. When this happens, there is a significant reduction in the heat
transfer rate and if the heat input to the metal is not immediately reduced to match the lower transfer
rate of the surface and the heat input to the metal is not Immediately reduces In order to match the
lower heat transfer capability of the surface, the metal temperature will rise until the radiation from the
surface plus the limited heat transfer of the boiling film is equal to the energy input. If the energy input
is in the form of work (including electrical energy) there is no limit to the temperature that could be
reached by the metal and its temperature can rise until the failure or 'burn-out' occurs, and this section
is attributed to the many failures in the radiant section of the advanced boilers.

Immersion heaters ought to be for sure be designed with enough location so that the warmth reflux in
no way exceeds the quintessential value. The penalties of a ‘burn out’ in a nuclear electricity plant will
be effectively appreciated

Condensing heat transfer

Condensation of a vapour onto a cold surface might also be ‘filmwise’ or ‘dropwise’. When ‘filmwise’
condensation is onto the outer layer of the liquid of film, the heat passes via the film and into the
surface largely via conduction. By treating a surface with an appropriate compound, it can also be
possible to promote ‘dropwise’ condensation. When this occurs, the surface is now not wetted by
using the liquid and the surface becomes included with beads of liquid which coalesce to shape drops
which then fall away leaving the surface bare for a repetition of action

Heat transfer coefficients with dropwise condensation are greater than with filmwise owning to the
absence of the liquid film. Boiling and condensing heat transfer are indispensable links in the products
of power, all types of refining and chemical processes, refrigeration etc. There is constant pressure for

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more heat transfer units with excessive heat transfer rates and a clear perception of the boiling and
condensing methods is essential for every mechanical and chemical engineer.

The Hilton boiling heat transfer unit has been designed to enhance the understanding of boiling and
condensing heat transfer and permits both a visual and analytical study of these processes.

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EXPERIMENTAL METHOD AND APPARATUS

Figure 2: Block diagram of the boiling heat transfer unit

Important features of the equipment:

- Cooling water – cools the whole system and prevents overheating

- Pressure gage – indicates the pressure of the condenser. It helps to ensure that the
condenser pressure is maintained at 40kPa
- Heater power – provides the heating power to the system

OPERATING PROCEDURE

 Turn on the electrical supply

 Open the cooling water tap and adjust the cooling water supply in the column.
 Note: the temperature indicator reads the temperature of the metal in degrees Celsius and the
thermometer in the liquid within the column reads the liquid temperature in degrees Celsius.
 Set the heat input to 40 watts
 Open the cooling water and slowly adjust it until the condenser pressure of 40kPa is reached
 NOTE: the condenser pressure must always be kept constant at 40kPa throughout the
experiment.

To determine what kind of boiling is occurring use the following guidelines/hints:

Convective Boiling occurs at low heat inputs and liquid will be seen to collect and drip off the
condenser coils, indicating that evaporation is proceeding at a slow rate.
Nucleate boiling occurs when the metal liquid temperature difference is still less than 20 ⁰C.
Film boiling occurs at high heat input suddenly reduced.

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 Variables that remained constant:
- Condenser pressure at 40kPa
Variables recorded in the experiment
- Metal Temperature
- Liquid temperature
- Vapour temperature
- Cooling water temperature (in)
- Cooling water temperature (out)
- Cooling water flowrate
- Heat input

Equations used:

Heat transfer rate at cooling coil (1)

Qw =mCp ( t out −t ¿ )
Heat transfer rate from heater (2)

Qc
Heat transfer to surroundings (3)

Qc −Q w

∅ 1=t s −t ¿

∅ 2=t s −t out
Log mean temperature difference (4)

∅ m =[ ∅ 1−∅ 2 ] /ln
[ ]
∅1
∅2

Overall heat transfer coefficient: (5)

U =Qw /∅ m

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 RESULTS, DISCSION AND CONCLUSION

Heat Condens Metal Liquid Vapour Cooling Cooling Cooling Observat

Input er Temp Temp Temp H2O H2O H2O ion
(watts) Pressure (⁰C) (⁰C) (⁰C) Temp In Temp Flow
(kPa) (⁰C) Out rate
(⁰C) (g/s)
20 40 49 38.5 36.5 26 27 0 convectiv
e
60 40 55 41 37 26 29.2 1.9 nucleate
100 40 60 41.5 38.8 26 34.7 2.7 nucleate
140 40 63 42 40 26 35.2 3.9 nucleate
180 40 65 42 40.8 26 35.9 4.7 nucleate
220 40 68 42 41 26 36.1 5.7 nucleate
260 40 70 42 41 26 36.9 6.7 nucleate
300 40 74 42 41 26 35.7 7.4 film
340 40 78 42 41 26 34.2 10 film
40 40 52 41 39 26 36.6 0 film
80 40 56 42 40.9 26 38.2 1.3 film
120 40 59 42 40.9 26 37.3 2.7 film
Table 1: Results obtained

Discussion

Figure 3: the types of boiling at different heat inputs (watts)

As observed from the graph above (figure 3) from 20 watts of heat input, a convective type of boiling
was observed (blue curve). This is due to the low heat input and the liquid was observed to collect
and drip off the condenser coils.

As the heat continued to increase, at the 60-watt point, nucleate boiling started to occur (orange
curve).
This was observed because the surface temperature was increasing which caused the excess vapour
pressure over the liquid pressure to increase and bubble were formed. Vigorous bubble formation and

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turbulence was observed. This heat input increased t0 260 watts with the boiling type still at nucleate
boiling.

The heat input kept on increasing to 300 watts where film boiling started to occur. This was observed
when the surfaces became ‘vapour locked’ and the liquid was unable to wet the surface which was
caused by a considerable reduction in heat transfer rate. The heat input reduced increased to
340watts and had a sudden decrease in value.

Figure 4: Metal, Vapour & Liquid temperature variations at different heat inputs.

As observed from figure 4, the vapour temperature increased constantly till it reached 41⁰C and
experienced film boiling and experienced a sudden decrease in the temperature as it slightly
decreased to 39⁰C.

The metal temperature had an increase till it reached 78⁰C and had a sudden decrease back to 52⁰C
and started to increase again. This is due to the film boiling that started to occur within the metal.

The liquid temperature also had a constant increase when till a certain point and experienced film
boiling.

At 20 watts, convective boiling was experienced by the metal, vapour and liquid, from there onwards
before each experienced film boiling, all the substances (liquid, metal & vapour) experienced,
nucleate boiling.

Conclusion

From the above data and graphs/curves, it is clear to conclude that convective boiling, film boiling,
and nucleate boiling occurred throughout the experiment. Another conclusion that is due is that
convective boiling occurred at the beginning and It occurred once, nucleate boiling followed right after
and occurred longer followed by film boiling. This was all dependant on the heat power input.

The temperatures of the metal, liquid and vapour kept on increasing as the heat input increased, till a
certain point where their temperatures had a sudden decrease and started increasing once again.

Recommendations

- Ensure that the condenser pressure is always kept content at 40kPa.

- Repeat the experiment to ensure improved accuracy of measurements.

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- Always ensure there is sufficient cooling water for the experiment.
- Ensure that the electrical supply works efficiently.

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NOMECLATURE

Condenser surface area – 0.032m2

Maximum permitted temperature - 220⁰C

Cp – specific heat capacity – 4.18 Kj Kg-1 K-1

kPa – kilopascals

⁰C – degrees Celsius

g/s – grams per second

Qw – Heat transfer rate at cooling coil - watts

Qc – heat transfer rate from heater - watts

∅m – Log mean temperature - Kelvin

K – Kelvin

W – watts

mw – water flow rate

tin – water temperature in

tout – water temperature out

ts- saturation temperature of liquid

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REFFERENCES

REFERENCES

[1] Sujoy Kumar Saha, Satish G Kandlikar, in Advances in Heat Transfer, 2011

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APPENDICES

THE OVERALL HEAT TRANSFER COEFFICIENT BETWEEN THE CONDENSING VAPOUR AND
THE WATER MAY BE FOUND AS FOLLOWS:

Water flow rate: mw = 1.9g/s

Water temp in t in = 26⁰C
Water temp out: tout = 29.2⁰C
Saturation temp of liquid: ts = 41⁰C
Heat input: Q = 60 W

Heat transfer rate at cooling coil:

Qw =mCp ( t out −t ¿ )
−3
¿ 1.9 ×10 × 4180 × ( 29.2−26 ) W

¿ 25.4144 W

Heat transfer rate from heater Q c =60 W

Heat transfer to surroundings (by difference)
Qc −Q w
¿ 60−25.414
¿ 34.5856 W
∅ 1=t s −t ¿
¿ 41−26
¿ 15 K

∅ 2=t s −t out
¿ 14−29.2
¿ 11.8 K

∅ m =[ ∅ 1−∅ 2 ] /ln
[ ]∅1
∅2

¿ [ 15−11.8 ] / ln
[ ]
15
11.8
¿ 13.336 K

Overall heat transfer coefficient: U =Q w /∅ m

¿ 25.4114 / [ 0.032 ×13.336 ]
−2 −1
¿ 59.55 m K

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