Study of the hovering period and bubble size in fully developed pool nucleate boiling of saturated liquid with a time-dependent heat source

In this paper, the bubble behavior in saturated pool boiling with a time-dependent heat source is analyzed. The study is restricted to the period from fully developed nucleate boiling until critical heat flux occurs. The hovering period and the departure volume of the bubble are selected as the characteristic parameters for bubble behavior. These parameters are quantified by solving the equation of motion for an idealized bubble. This equation is solved for cases in which the surface heat flux changes linearly and exponentially as a function of time. After nondimensionalization, the results are compared directly with the results of the steady-state problem. The comparison shows that the transient heat input has practically no effect on the hovering period. However, the transient heat flux causes a decreased volume at bubble departure. The volume decrease is dependent on the severity of the transient. These results are in qualitative agreement with the experimental observation quoted in the literature