Mechanistic impact of Stern bilayer-based electrolysis on the enhancement of pool boiling heat transfer

Pool boiling is a heat transfer method that utilizes phase change for efficient heat transfer, and enhancing its heat transfer intensity and understanding the mechanism is of great practical significance for refrigeration and microelectronics thermal management. This study employs experimental methods to innovatively use ionic surfactant modification on heating surfaces, building on the basis of strengthening heat transfer by generating hydrogen bubbles through water electrolysis to increase nucleation sites on the heating surface. The Stern double layer formed on the heating surface is utilized to control the growth rate and quantity of hydrogen bubbles, thus achieving controllable nucleation density on the heating surface. The study examines its impact on heat transfer efficiency and the onset of nucleate boiling (ONB). Results indicate that electrolysis can increase nucleation sites at low heat fluxes, thereby enhancing heat transfer. Using a CTAB solution at a concentration of 3200 ppm with an electrolytic current of 0.08A, under the Stern potential at saturated adsorption, the heat transfer coefficient increased by up to 3.16 times. Additionally, the superheat at ONB decreased from 12.6 K to 4.4 K under boiling heat flux. Therefore, utilizing electrolysis with the addition of surfactants to enhance rapid cooling of high-temperature surfaces provides a novel engineering application approach.