Condensation heat transfer experiments were performed by using steam at 0.1 MPa. The enhancement of drop-wise condensation heat transfer by functionalizing a heat transfer surface was examined. A gold-plated surface was used to produce the drop wise condensation. Grooved heat transfer surfaces were adopted to functionalize the heat transfer surface. The shape and the size of the groove were rectangular and 2 mm × 2 mm × 2 mm, respectively. When the top parts and the walls of grooves were plated with gold, the heat transfer rate was the highest. The second was the case that all area of the grooves was plated with gold. The third was the case that only the top parts of the grooves were plated with gold. The forth was the plain gold-plated surface. The drop wise condensation was enhanced by 2.6 times at the most when the heat transfer surface was divided into two areas that had different functions of condensing (the gold-plated surface) and draining (the copper-bare surface). Condensate drops on the gold-plated surface were pulled into films on the copper-bare surface. It helped to remove the drops on the gold-plated heat transfer surface and to expose the gold-plated heat transfer surface to steam for much longer time.

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