Article ID Journal Published Year Pages File Type
10391956 Experimental Thermal and Fluid Science 2005 12 Pages PDF
Abstract
When humid air comes in contact with a cold surface maintained below the freezing temperature, heat and mass transfer occur and a frost layer begins to grow. Simple models for the growth of the frost layer on a flat plate are presented and they focus on diffusion and phase change inside the porous media. A simple model was built on the assumption that the water-vapor concentration at the frost surface is saturated, and that the gradient of vapor pressure is the same as the value obtained from the Clausius-Clapeyron equation. It was found that initial porosity of the frost layer affected the characteristics of frost growth. In order to solve the inconsistency of the diffusion resistance of water-vapor in the region of high porosity, the model was modified with the assumption that the concentration of water-vapor at the frost surface was in supersaturation. Two parameters controlling the densification and thickness growth of the frost layer were obtained.
Related Topics
Physical Sciences and Engineering Chemical Engineering Fluid Flow and Transfer Processes
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