Case 14259

Superwetting Surface for Diminishing Leidenfrost Effect

Keywords:

Droplet-surface interaction, Leidenfrost point (LFP), Leidenfrost effect, Superwetting nanostructures

Applications:

    Two-phase cooling devices

Problem:

    Limited heat flux of conventional two-phase cooling solutions due to the Leidenfrost effect

Technology:

The invention provides new superwetting nanostructures that can fundamentally alter droplet-surface interactions to continuously rewet the surface and prevent vapor film formation. Micro-scale square posts can be fabricated on silicon wafers with a regular micro-electromechanical system process, photolithography followed by reactive ion etch. For different micro-nano hierarchical structures, silica particles with different diameters, from 15nm to 75nm, were spin-coated on the substrates already having micro scale square posts, and sintered. Such square-pillared design of surface textures can significantly enhance nucleate boiling and diminish the Leidenfrost limits.

Advantages:
  • Increase the critical power, or the maximum thermal power that the surface may produce at a given cooling flow inlet condition
  • Enhance heat transfer from the surface to the coolant

Inventors:
  • Professor Kripa K. Varanasi (Department of Mechanical Engineering, MIT)
  • Christopher Jameson Love (Department of Mechanical Engineering, MIT)
  • Adam T. Paxson (Department of Mechanical Engineering, MIT)
  • Hyukmin Kwon (Department of Mechanical Engineering, MIT)
  • Jonathan D. Smith (Department of Mechanical Engineering, MIT)

Intellectual Property:

US Patent Application Number 12/872353, filed on August 31, 2010

PCT Patent Application Number PCT/US2011/043696, filed on July 12, 2011

Publications:

N/A

Last revised: April 29, 2013

>>List of MIT Energy IP<<