Pool boiling heat transfer at finned tubes: influence of surface roughness and shape of the fins

Pool boiling heat transfer from finned tubes with different shapes of fins (trapezoid-shaped, T-shaped, or Y-shaped) to various hydrocarbons and partly fluorinated hydrocarbons has been investigated at the Laboratorium für Wärme- und Kältetechnik, Universität-GH Paderborn during the recent past. Compared to corresponding measurements on plain tubes, heat transfer on traditionally finned tubes with trapezoid-shaped fins is considerably improved, and even better results are achieved with T-shaped or Y-shaped fins. The influences of the macrostructure (i.e. fin geometry) or microstructure (i.e. surface roughness) on the heat transfer coefficient have been studied separately, in order to evaluate the improvement of heat transfer by either influence.