DEPRESSURIZATION EFFECTS ON THE THERMAL FIELDS AND HEAT TRANSFER DURING HEMI-SPHERICAL BUBBLE GROWTH ON A HEATED SURFACE

A numerical simulation has been carried out which predicts the growth and wall heat-transfer characteristics of a bubble atop a heated flat surface in an otherwise quiescent pool of liquid. In accordance with the experimental conditions and observations of Merte et al. (1995), the simulations are carried out on a constant heat flux surface in microgravity, and the bubble maintains a hemispherical shape with no contribution of a microlayer. The …