This $458,773 National Science Foundation project grant in the Engineering program (CFDA 47.041) funds research at the University of Minnesota from June 2022 to May 2027 to develop a new framework for understanding pool boiling and its role in predicting critical heat flux. The framework aims to enable real-time assessment of safety margins as surfaces degrade, promoting adoption of advanced heat transfer techniques while providing better fundamental understanding of boiling phenomena. As part of the work, the university will develop an exhibit for middle school students illustrating chaotic phenomena like the butterfly effect parallel to boiling processes. Outreach modules will also bring middle school girls to campus for STEM workshops. The research seeks to reproduce observed nonlinear boiling curve behaviors through nucleation site interaction modeling and analyze experimental data using multifractal approaches. High-speed thermometry and microscopy will further characterize wicking flow under departing bubbles to understand trends and assist model development.
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