Transient Thermal Characteristics for a Liquid Drop Impacting a Hot PCM Substrate

The physics of the transient behavior of liquid drops impacting hot or cold surfaces are of significance in many different applications such as spray cooling, aircraft icing, etc. Further, the transient heating and cooling of vapor spots and liquid patches is of significance in determining the heat transfer performance parameters in phase change processes such as boiling and condensation. The thermal transients in all these processes are primarily dictated by the passive thermal properties of the solid substrate (e.g. thermal conductivity, specific heat) and by the flow conditions. An active control (or manipulation) of these thermal transients could provide a means to enhance the performance parameters in various phase change-based heat transfer processes. In this study, we experimentally explore the effect of a solid-liquid phase change material (PCM) coating on the thermal characteristics of a liquid drop impacting a hot surface. High-speed optical and infrared imaging techniques are employed for visualizing the flow and measuring the temperatures, respectively. The PCM, depending on its melting temperature and due to its latent heat of fusion, disrupts the normal process of the heating of the drop and cooling of the substrate. The insights obtained from these findings can have a significant impact on several technologies in the areas of phase change-based heat transfer and thermal management.