Experimental Study of Flow Boiling Heat Transfer in Mini-Tube

Flow boiling heat transfer characteristics of R134a were experimentally investigated in a horizontal stainless steel mini-tube. The inner diameter of the test tube is 1.3 mm and the tube wall thickness is 0.1 mm. Local heat transfer coefficients are obtained over a range of vapor qualities up to 0.8, mass fluxes from 310 to 860 kg/m²s, heat fluxes from 21 to 50 kW/m², and saturation pressures from 6.5 to 7.5 bar. The mass flux, heat flux, saturation pressure, and vapor quality dependences of heat transfer coefficients are demonstrated. Based on an available model in recent literature potential heat transfer mechanisms are also analyzed.