Mass Transfer of Diluted Volatile and Nonvolatile Components to a Nucleate Boiling Electrode Available to Purchase

The mass transfer behavior of electro-active species from bulk solution to a metal surface (Alloy 800) under subcooled boiling and fully developed nucleate boiling conditions was investigated using a novel pool-boiling device. The electrochemical method was used to measure the mass transfer rate on a boiling surface. Potassium ferricyanide and hydrogen peroxide were used as the nonvolatile and volatile reaction species, respectively. It was found that for both volatile and nonvolatile species, the mass transfer rate was increased in the subcooled nucleate boiling region where the subcooled electrolyte temperature varied between 80°C and 95°C. This was a result of the enhanced micromixing effect. On the other hand, under the fully developed nucleate boiling region where the electrolyte temperature remained relatively constant at 96°C, the increase in mass transfer rate with increasing heat flux was attributed to the increased macromixing effects. Also, the mass transfer rate for hydrogen peroxide was found to increase at higher rate than that of ferricyanide ions because of the volatile nature of hydrogen peroxide, allowing it to be transferred through both liquid and vapor phases during the reaction.