Application of Microfabrication to Boiling and Evaporation Experiments

This presentation will describe two studies undertaken in collaboration with the Institute for Materials & Processes where microfluidic devices fabricated at the SMC have enabled the characterisation of microboiling and evaporation.

Microfluidic channels are a promising technology for the cooling of microelectronics due to their ability to remove high amounts of heat without a lot of energy being required to move cooling liquid.  The first part of the seminar will discuss how microfluidic channels combined with microboiling techniques can be used to develop efficient cooling systems.

In the second part, the evaporation of sessile droplets on microstructured surfaces produced at the SMC will be considered. Surface wetting plays a crucial role in a wide range of technological applications but there are still gaps in the fundamental understanding of this phenomenon. Ongoing research being carried out to characterise the effect of inter-structural spacing on the rate of drying and the droplet shape during drying will be presented.