Fluid Flow Effects in Evaporation From Liquid–Vapor Meniscus

A mathematical model of the evaporating liquid–vapor meniscus in a capillary slot has been developed. The model includes two-dimensional steady-state momentum conservation and energy equations for both the vapor and liquid phases, and incorporates the existing simplified one-dimensional model of the evaporating microfilm. The numerical results, obtained for water, demonstrate the importance of accounting for the fluid flow in calculating the effective evaporative heat transfer coefficient and the superheat of the vapor over the liquid–vapor meniscus due to the heat transfer from the heated wall. With higher heat fluxes, a recirculation zone appears in the vapor near the heated wall due to extensive evaporation in the thin-film region of the liquid–vapor meniscus.